


Slice of Lemon

by ArcanicSoul, Rolex



Category: citrus - サブロウタ | citrus - Saburouta
Genre: ALL THE FLUFF, F/F, Some Fluff, Sweet love making, all the feels tho, some smut, what plot?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-27
Updated: 2019-03-07
Packaged: 2019-06-16 22:15:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 34,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15447030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArcanicSoul/pseuds/ArcanicSoul, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rolex/pseuds/Rolex
Summary: A sneak peek into the hidden fluffy moments in the lives of Yuzu and Mei ranging from awkward flirting to spoiling the other and even up to rolling around in the sheets.Gotta make the odds even. [Aka the place where Rolex stores their garbage]





	1. Getting Lost

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! 
> 
> It's been a blast being in the fandom so far! I would like to thank the recent Citrus Discord server I've recently joined for helping lift my writing motivation. One in specific I would like to thank is punklobster for giving me and Rolex the set of fluff prompts to work with! Without it, this chapter most likely wouldn't even exist.
> 
> And another special thank you to Mizu! Really, your suggestions and ideas really helped me piece this chapter to become the way it is now. Makes me super happy I know someone like you~
> 
> Finally (let's not get that ego inflated as it is) a definite special thank you to my co-writer (and beta reader for this chapter), Rolex! Seriously, without her and her telling me to move my butt on this chapter, it probably would have been in my docs for who knows how long. But yeah, thanks to her again for bringing this chapter to life and being as she puts it, a godsend
> 
> This piece will be a collection of Citrus one-shots as a mini project collaboration between me and Rolex so be sure to look forward to what we come up with next~
> 
> Prompt 1: Getting Lost

“Remind me again why we’re here.”

Mei heaved a sigh, glancing at her nervously grinning girlfriend. In retrospect, she should have seen this happening, knowing Yuzu’s consistent streak of missing the finer details. 

“Because we’re here for the Sapporo Snow Festival!” The blonde explained as she reached out a hand to take a hold of Mei’s. “You know, for our anniversary! I’ve never gone there and you’ve never gone there, so it’s perfect!” She beamed.

Yuzu never had the opportunity to go the festival due to costs while Mei was more of the opposite. The latter could have the costs covered easily with her family’s fortune, but with the lack of time to do so and focusing on more important matters such as being the next head of the Aihara family, she never bothered with the yearly snow festival. 

Until now, that is.

With their schedules freed from the shackles of college and the day of their anniversary approaching, Yuzu decided it was the perfect time for a road trip. Seeing as how neither of them visited the infamous festival, Yuzu thought it was perfect for their anniversary.

Plus, it didn’t hurt that the snow reminded Yuzu of the first time they held hands. 

Letting out yet another sigh, Mei leaned back into the seat of the shinkansen, intertwining their fingers. “We were promised a four hour trip to Hodotake and yet so far, combined with train failures in addition to other unforeseen problems, it has been a total of seven hours. So remind me again, why did we decide on taking the train instead of an airplane?” 

The cost of traveling by air would most likely have been higher, but at least they would have arrived at their destination in a reasonable amount of time. 

“Because I thought it would be best for us to go on an adventure! Just the two of us!” she cheerily answered. Yuzu’s smile softened, leaning in to brush her lips across her girlfriend’s cheek. “And I’m more familiar with the train system than those fancy planes.”

Mei felt her resolve crumble at that last statement, having always prioritized Yuzu’s well-being over hers. Yuzu never did well with high altitude and the airplane system, having been established in recent years. With time pressing on them, she preferred something she was more familiar with while Mei, as whipped as she was, followed Yuzu’s suggestion. 

With a soft smile of her own, she leaned in to place a light kiss on Yuzu’s lips, “You’re lucky I thought to have brought a book. I need something to keep me preoccupied for these next few hours. I’ll never understand how you and Harumi can keep yourselves busy with those phones of yours.”

“Because we know you can’t use a mobile phone for your life, right?” Yuzu instantly shot back, teasing as she returned the light peck. 

And with that, the black-haired beauty opted to look away, clearing her throat, “Regardless of whether or not I can use a mobile phone, this trip is taking too long.” Mei wasn’t one for complaining, if at all, but in recent years, she warmed up and even gotten used to speaking her thoughts to Yuzu.

It wasn’t an easy road as Mei had been taught the majority of her life to shelter her emotions. At the time, it didn’t seem much of a problem. With her being groomed to take over the academy once the time came, emotions were the last thing she needed to worry about when it came to learning how to take over her grandfather’s school.

As the future director of Aihara Academy, emotions were only a minor inconvenience to her. But as Yuzu’s girlfriend, sharing emotions was the foundation of their relationship.

After spending some time apart once college began, it quickly became apparent she couldn’t stick to her old ways forever. With multiple miscommunications along with too many fights to count, something had to change. Or at least, someone. 

So, with a step forward, she reached out to Yuzu, making constant efforts to express her feelings more to the other. From then on, it became second nature for Mei to casually voice her thoughts, as little as some may seem. 

“Then nap,” Yuzu suggested, lifting up the armrest between them. Her hand moved to wrap around Mei’s waist, guiding her closer. “Before you know it, we’ll be in time for the Snow Festival!” The younger woman found it hard to fight her suggestion, tired from recent events such as preparing to officially take over the academy. 

Leaning in, she nuzzled into Yuzu’s neck, relaxing in her hold. Sleep came soon, her eyes closing as she drifted off into slumber.

~~

Turns out, Yuzu wasn’t as right as Mei had hoped for.

By the time Mei woke up from her nap, they were indeed in Hokkaido territory but the main concern still remained: How would they be able to get to the Snow Festival in time?

Time didn’t seem to be on their side today as the unexpected train delays pushed back the possibility of arriving to the festival on time. However, after stepping outside of the train station, Mei was quickly reminded of another obstacle.

Despite having numerous business trips with Grandfather, and later with her father, all over Japan, Mei never had time to familiarize with the surroundings. And with the meeting place already decided and the logistics in place, there was never a need to go sightseeing. It was a simple meetup: sign a few papers, and then head back home.

So even though Mei did indeed visit Hokkaido more times than she could count, she never felt the desire to explore the area. There were others to guide her and keep an eye on her so why would she want to in the first place?

But standing outside of the train station, her hand clasped with Yuzu’s, it quickly became apparent this was a detail she had overlooked. Karma was loving to rear its ugly head at her. 

There were people bustling about, signs directing to places she never heard about and the buildings…The buildings looked so different from what she was used to. Mei unknowingly curled into Yuzu’s side, the notion of her being in such a foreign environment smacked her in the face. 

She always considered herself the reliable one out of the two but whenever she looked right and left, she would get confused. Her mind searching for familiarity, but her eyes saying differently.

“Come on, Mei. We have to get to the next station.” Yuzu tugged on her hand, leading the way as she held her phone in the other hand. “I did some research and I’m almost positive this is where we’re supposed to go!” She had that grin on her face, the kind that said ‘Don’t worry, I got this!’

This should have raised a red flag at the time, as Yuzu and research rarely, if ever, go hand in hand. 

With Yuzu constantly checking the map on her phone, Mei opted to stay quiet, letting the blonde take charge. With Mei’s inability to properly navigate those fancy touchscreen mobile phones, she usually went for the traditional method of bringing a map. But of course, Yuzu had insisted Mei take a step back and let her handle the trip.

That decision would come back and bite them both in the butts later.

Over the next couple of hours, the couple had been jumping from train to train in an attempt to find their way, even going backwards. They resorted to “retracing their steps”, as Yuzu had called it, but Mei was less inclined to believe in such words.

“Yuzu we’ve been at this for hours,” Mei voiced out in exasperation, her eyes screaming exhaustion. “Why don’t we just follow the map?” she suggested as she pulled it out of her bag. It was a pamphlet she had snatched from their recent expedition to yet another train station.

“No, no! Don’t worry Mei, I got this!” Yuzu insisted as she fiddled with the map application on her phone. Despite the positive tone in her voice, her expression said otherwise, her eyebrows furrowed while her eyes glittered with determination. That look usually meant two things: she knew what she was doing, for once, or she had no idea what she was doing and pretended that she did indeed knew what to do.

Mei was willing to bet her role as a director that the latter was the one occurring.

She watched, barely holding in a sigh, as Yuzu continued fumbling around, trying to comprehend the directions her phone was giving her. The main problem for Yuzu was that there were multiple train stops for them to get on and off at and Hokkaido had a different system than what she was used to in the busy city of Tokyo. With her not knowing the routes as well, it was hard to make sense of the map she was looking at.

“Yuzu, it’s already around 7 and the festivals will most likely close within the next hour. So I say we look at this map,” she held her physical copy up, raising a brow, “and study it instead of following a map,” she looked pointedly at Yuzu’s phone, “that’s been having us run around in circles.”

“The map on this phone,” Yuzu emphasized as she waved her phone around, “is more likely up to date than that map you’re holding.”

“Then why have we yet to reach our destination?” Mei retorted with a pointed look. 

“Because… because... “ Yuzu was at a loss for words at that, her mind scrambling to think of a counter, and failing.

Seeing the dejected face on the older woman, Mei figured there was no use in bantering further, especially if they weren’t going anywhere. “It’s getting late. We should probably find someplace to stay.” 

“Right! Wouldn’t want to catch a cold before the festival,” Yuzu agreed. “Let me just find some hotels nearby…” she began typing away directions on her phone, much to Mei’s dismay. As helpful as technology was, there would be times it would prove to be unreliable. Such as right now. 

“I already found one while you kept dragging us around in circles,” Mei promptly declared with a hint of annoyance in her voice. Yuzu shot her head up with a look of disbelief, with a pout on her lips, ready to protest heading off to a hotel. “I know how much this festival means to you, especially for our anniversary, but it’s late and running around in circles isn’t going to help us. I’d rather we sleep off the streets and we can plan accordingly tomorrow morning, once we’re more settled in, alright?”

She raised a brow, as if daring for Yuzu to retaliate to her plan of action.

But Yuzu only grinned at Mei’s reply, playfully nudging her side with an elbow. “Hey, at the very least, if the whole sleeping on the streets ever happens we can always keep each other warm. They say cuddling helps maintain body heat, especially during the wintertime, am I right?”

Mei rolled her eyes in response, then turned away from Yuzu to hide the spreading blush on her face. She grumbled in return, her hand reaching out for Yuzu’s in the meantime, “Let’s just go.”

~~

Surprisingly, it didn’t take long for them to reach the hotel, checking in with little problem. It was a nice change of pace from their hassled day.

With the hotel providing the couple bathrobes, Yuzu volunteered to get the single bed hotel room ready for them while Mei took a shower. It wasn’t unusual for Yuzu to place Mei’s well-being before hers and she knew that Mei would want a nice soothing hot shower. 

She inspected the place, munching on a sandwich on the side as she got their luggage ready, getting out the necessitates including a change of clothing, toothbrushes and toothpaste, and the chargers for their devices.

Yuzu would never understand why Mei insisted on bringing her laptop during their vacation. She remembered hearing something along the lines of “In case work calls and an emergency rises” but Yuzu doubted that would happen. Nevertheless, she respected her lover’s wishes, placing the computer and their phones on the desk, charging the three devices.

Soon enough, after Mei finished her shower, she stepped into the room with nothing but a bathrobe on, using a towel to dry her hair. “I’m done showering, Yuzu.”

“Okay!” Yuzu grabbed her own bathrobe, kissing Mei on the cheek before skipping off to the bathroom, looking forward to the relaxing shower. 

While Yuzu was preoccupied, Mei decided to relax on the bed, exhausted from the day’s events. Rushing around like a maniac all day, especially for one as unfit as her, left her without much energy other than to laze around in the comfortable bed. As she listened to relaxing sounds of running water, her eyelids grew heavy and she found herself dozing off.

The nap was over soon though, when Yuzu, done with her shower and clad with a bathrobe, went to cuddle up with the director, waking her with a peck on the lips. “And here I thought you were going to wait for me,” she pouted, grinning though as she leaned in for a round of sweet kisses.

“Wait for you to do what? It’s already 11 p.m.” Mei sighed exasperatedly, returning the kisses tenderly as her hand went to cradle Yuzu’s waist. “It’s natural for me to be tired after all the running around we did thanks to a certain someone.”

A crimson blush spread across Yuzu’s cheeks, nuzzling into Mei’s shoulder sheepishly as her legs moved to intertwine with the other’s. “It’s not my fault Japan Maps had a few glitches here and there.” 

“No, but at least a physical map would have been more reliable,” Mei grumbled, stroking the blonde strands. “At the very least, you can’t blame me for wanting to take a nap.”

Yuzu opened her mouth, trying to think of a comeback before closing it with a pout. It didn’t take long for a devious smirk to make its way upon her face. The older girl leaned in to lightly blow on Mei’s ear, causing the other woman’s spine to tingle, “How about I energize you then?” 

A rare chuckle came out of Mei, the cheeks flushing predictably at the tease, “I mean...” her hands slid down to undo the knot on the front of Yuzu’s bathrobe, tilting her head to lean in for another kiss, “I’m feeling a bit hungry right now.”

“Should I order something for you then? This hotel offers free meal services.” Yuzu smirked, leaning into her touch as her own hands fumbled with the knot on Mei’s bathrobe, “...with the holidays coming up.”

“Thank you, but I don’t think that will be necessary. No need to waste time when there’s already a meal in front of me,” she smirked coyly as her hands slid up to intertwine behind Yuzu’s neck and pulled her down into a kiss. 

With work piling up between the two of them, they hadn’t been able to spend much time together. Mei was learning the ropes in becoming the director while Yuzu worked as a model for various companies while also finishing up their college work. At the very least, they were only given some time to breathe with the upcoming holidays. 

For Mei, the main perk of having this free time was being able to love Yuzu to the best of her abilities. And what better time to do that than right now.

Closing her eyes, Mei tilted her head downwards, kissing along Yuzu’s jawline and down her throat as her hands pulled off the bathrobe and threw it off to the side. There was no need for that piece of clothing for the next few hours.

In return, Yuzu got rid of Mei’s bathrobe. Her hands slid up and down the younger woman’s body, admiring her curves. Her eyes closed and tilted her head to give Mei more room, twitching with each kiss. Mei’s arms didn’t hesitate to pull the older woman closer, occasionally planting butterfly kisses and running her tongue along the base of her neck. 

There, she left her mark. 

Or two. 

Or three. 

Or more.

Mei trailed down Yuzu’s body, leaving hickeys along the way. Her hands went to grasp Yuzu by her behind, nudging her upwards as she settled her back on the sheets, adjusting herself to rest on the bed more comfortably. 

Following the nudge, Yuzu didn’t hesitate to move upwards. Her hands shot out to grab the headboard, her legs moving to rest on both sides of Mei’s head. Not that it mattered much. It wasn’t the first time they had done this position, as shown by Mei’s hands instinctively grabbing Yuzu by the waist. 

Even with the teasing, it didn’t take long for Mei to reach her destination, playfully nipping at Yuzu’s inner thighs while her hands remained firmly gripping her backside. Mei could feel her lover wriggle, begging to relieve her tension. Whimpers of “Mei please” and “hurry up” could be heard, her back arching as she tried to desperately get closer. The taller woman didn’t consider herself to be much of a sadist, but there was something rather pleasing in knowing how much Yuzu needed her, especially when she went so far as to beg.

Yuzu grinded her hips downwards, wanting to feel the other’s lips on her own already. “Please... Mei,” she groaned, “I need you.”

“Patience is a virtue,” Mei cooed. 

“If I say you’re a virtue, would that get you to move faster?” Yuzu lightly growled, having missed Mei’s touch these past few weeks. Instead of responding verbally, Mei chose to respond with biting softly at her inner thighs. 

Yuzu whined out in pleasure, maintaining her firm grip on the headboard. She could feel the warmth of arousal spread from in between her legs, increasing her desperation even further “That’s not a proper answer.”

“Then here’s a proper one.” Shifting to adjust her lover accordingly, her hands spreaded Yuzu’s legs apart as she leaned up to flick her tongue against her slit. The model sighed in relief at the contact, then groaned out in approval, her hips rolling downwards.

“M-More.”

At her plead, Mei leaned in for another taste, her tongue flicking upwards to her clit. Yuzu let out another groan, more high-pitched this time as her back arched and hips bucked. The older woman’s body tingled at the sensation and tried to keep herself from falling, using the headboard as a support. 

Fluids continued flowing down onto Mei’s lips, and the taste only made her crave Yuzu all the more. Throwing aside the teasing, she latched her lips onto her sensitive spot, using her tongue to her full advantage. 

For now, Mei intended to focus on that particular area, her tongue flicking up and down, side to side, occasionally nipping here and there. This was more than enough for Yuzu. Sensitive from lack of recent contact, her hips continued rolling at a steady rhythm to match what she felt down there. 

“Yuzu…” Mei whispered in between licks. “Yuzu…”

The older woman tried to respond, tried to ask what Mei wanted, but another slow lick turned her into a begging, pleading mess. Instead of words, Yuzu answered with more groans and whines, aching for Mei to push further inside her. 

“Yuzu…” she heard again. “You...taste good…”

Yuzu’s breath hitched in her throat, feeling her lower body tighten at those words. “Deeper.” 

Mei followed her command, sliding her tongue in as far as she could go while her thumb went to tease at the model’s sensitive nub. Years of being together had Mei less shy about such activities, working every fiber of her being to pleasure her significant other. With the blonde’s moans growing higher and her hips moving more frantically, it wouldn’t be far-fetched to say she was close.

With her tongue digging in deep and her fingers moving furiously, it didn’t take long for Yuzu’s back to arch, moaning out her release. Perhaps they should have taken the showers later instead, but that was the last thing on Mei’s mind as she leaned up to lick at the remaining juices, enjoying her “meal”.

Coming down from her orgasm, Yuzu gasped a sigh of relief, dismounting Mei’s face before collapsing right beside her. It took a few moments for her to catch her breath, her legs still twitching from the pleasure. Under lidded eyes, she saw Mei approaching her, feeling her lover’s hand cradle her face. “Been a while since we’ve done that, huh?” Yuzu whispered contently, tilting her head to kiss her palm.

“No thanks to our schedules.” The taller woman shifted to cuddle up with the other, her hand reaching downwards to pull the blanket over them. “But anyway, how was that?” 

Yuzu hummed in approval, snuggling much closer to Mei. “You were incredible, as always. Did you enjoy your meal?” 

“I did,” Mei answered, her eyes flashing devilishly, “But...I’m in the mood for seconds.”  
She was about to make her way on top of the model, intent on bringing her to the edge once more before Yuzu flipped them, straddling the director’s hips and pinned her wrists before Mei could take the initiative again. 

“You were saying?” the older woman smirked.

Mei whined in response, squirming half-heartedly to get free. “Is there something wrong with wanting a second round?” She challenged, biting her lower lip sheepishly.

“Not really. Only condition is, I’m on top this time.” The model emphasized her point by leaning down to kiss and bite at the top of Mei’s chest.

“You were on top a few moments ago,” she pointed out, doing little to resist but not quite submitting yet.

“Sharing is caring, Mei,” Yuzu chuckled, making her way down. “Besides, I don’t think you’ll complain much soon enough.” 

The last thing Mei could recall during the next hour was the way Yuzu’s emerald eyes glinted mischievously as she made herself comfortable down below.

~~

By the end of their “activities”, it wouldn’t have been a stretch to say the sheets were soaked and the couple satisfied. Despite the stickiness of their sweat and the ache between her legs, Mei shifted to snuggle up with the other. 

A comfortable silence fell over the two, basking in the afterglows of their love making. The pair shared slow, yet loving kisses with Mei’s fingers tracing random shapes on Yuzu’s lower back while Yuzu’s fingers were curled, cradling behind Mei’s neck.

“We should tuck in for the night soon,” Mei murmured softly, gazing into Yuzu’s eyes as she leaned in to place a peck on her nose.

“After I do something first.” Yuzu giggled at the peck, returning one on the cheek, never breaking their eye contact.

“And that would be?” The director gave Yuzu a look of “What else could you do at this time of night?”

With another giggle and a gentle kiss, “Do you have a map because I’m getting lost in your eyes.”


	2. A Name Just for You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt 2: Pet Names - Yuzu tries to find a cute nickname to call her bae

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yo, it's me, Rolex, trying to get my writing momentum back. Big shoutout to ArcanicSoul for helping me out with this oneshot ^^; I've been taking a break from writing "my own" works and decided to focus on this little project with her. And boi, it's been getting me out of my writing slump these past few weeks. I'm glad to be working on this collab with her (even though this is literally only the second oneshot lmao), it's made writing a bit more fun for me after writer's block hit me in the head 
> 
> Anyway...enjoy~

“Honey?” 

“No,” Mei shot back in annoyance as she flipped through another page in her book. The younger girl shuffled to curl up more comfortably at her girlfriend’s side on the couch while Yuzu’s arms adjusted around her in a cuddle hug. 

“Dear?” the older girl tried again. 

Mei bit back a sigh as she saw Yuzu continue to stare at her magazine containing a list titled ‘Cute Nicknames to Call Your Significant Other’.

Yuzu was at it again, trying to find her yet another nickname to call her by. She had been at it for a few days, often calling Mei a variety of ‘nicknames’ as Yuzu put it. At first, Mei brushed them off as another one of Yuzu’s playful antics. So long as she continued to ignore them, then eventually Yuzu would stop with the names and go back to calling her by her actual name. But then again this was Yuzu...and if there was anything Mei should’ve learned by now is that Yuzu isn’t the kind to give up so easily, even when it came to minor things such as finding a suitable nickname for her girlfriend. 

“Sweetie?” 

No response. 

“Babe?” The name almost caused Mei to groan out in embarrassment.

“Yuzu,” Mei called out in that authoritative tone of hers. But Yuzu didn’t even flinch one bit. 

“Aw, come on, Mei!” Yuzu whined. “Don’t think I didn’t notice you all pouty when Harumin tagged along the other day to hang out with us.” 

“I don’t know what you mean,” Mei casually denied, continuing to focus on the contents of her book. 

She didn’t want to give Yuzu the satisfaction that she may have felt a bit left out while she and Harumi were having their own little sidedate. While Yuzu and Mei were casually having another one of their dates at the mall, the two unexpectedly ran into Harumi. And because the two hadn’t seen each other in so long due to the workload both had to deal with at their respective colleges, Mei didn’t think much of Yuzu and Harumi’s so-called reunion. As much as Yuzu prioritized spending time with Mei over most things, the reality was that Yuzu had a life and other friends outside of her girlfriend. 

What was the harm in having them all grab some coffee together?

It seemed like a simple and harmless reunion at first. The three merely spent time catching up at a nearby coffee shop at the mall they were at. Yuzu talked about the classes she was taking and the new friends she made at her college while Mei only responded with short answers about her college life whenever Harumi was curious enough to ask. 

That was how it started, until the two wanted to go shopping like old times, as Harumi had put it. 

For Mei, the afternoon quickly spiraled downhill from there. Rather than having a typical, enjoyable date with her girlfriend, Mei ended up acting as the third-wheel, only tagging along and watching Yuzu head off into yet another clothing store. 

It shouldn’t have bothered her in the slightest. Mei was used to accompanying Yuzu and Harumi’s shopping ‘adventures’ in the past, but after awhile she suddenly noticed how the two would refer to each other by names such as ‘Harumin’ and ‘Yuzuchii’. Despite the names being ones she was familiar with hearing, the younger girl couldn’t help but wonder why Yuzu never gave her a name exclusive to their relationship. She felt ridiculous and almost embarrassed for dwelling on something so inconvenient and minuscule in their relationship. 

“Darling?” Yuzu suggested.

“No,” she sighed. “Besides, I don’t see a point in you giving me some ridiculous name,” Mei continued, trying to feign indifference. Internally though, her heart had fluttered with each pet name Yuzu came up with. She unconsciously lifted her book up to hide her blush from those earlier moments.

“Because I know you want me to call you something special,” Yuzu pointed out, “After all, we’ve been together for years and I think it would be a nice step into taking our relationship further. Think of it like our rings!” she finished, holding up her hand to flash the ring on her finger.

In hindsight, it was a bit funny they already had the experience of rolling around in the sheets before Yuzu got the idea of gifting Mei with a special nickname.

“Well then…” Mei began, setting her book on her lap, “I have a nickname for you.”

The older girl lit up, internally bouncing with excitement as she waited in anticipation for what kind of special name Mei wanted to give her.

“Really! What is it?”

“Slo’zu,” Mei answered with a deadpan voice. 

“Mei!” Yuzu playfully shoved her girlfriend on her shoulder. “I'm being serious!”

“As am I,” Mei said with amusement. “It was one of the first names I called you by when we first met.” 

Yuzu raised a brow waiting for an explanation, surprised Mei seemed to remember that small detail.

“Wait, really?” 

Mei nodded.

Pursing her lips disapprovingly, Yuzu pouted, “I just think it’s not really a fitting nickname for me, you know?” 

Mei chucked in response, not before releasing a sigh of defeat. 

“Maybe I was feeling a little...jealous the other day when you were with Harumi,” she admitted.

Yuzu sighed a bit before smiling, tightening her hug on her girlfriend. “That’s why I thought maybe giving you a cute nickname would make you feel a bit better. Harumin’s my best friend, but so are you.” 

“And yet you waited until now to properly bestow me a nickname.” Mei quipped sarcastically, shaking her head at how slow her lover could be. “You say that the nickname I chose for you isn’t fitting, and yet…”

It was Yuzu’s turn to have a hint of blush on her cheeks, sputtering out a response, “I’m not always slow. I can be fast when it counts,” she coughed, “especially when it comes to the bedroom.”

Yuzu didn’t know if her ears heard that correctly, but she could’ve sworn a few giggles could be heard from her girlfriend. A faint warmth spread throughout her chest, internally beaming that she was able to make Mei laugh, something that only occasionally occurred despite the past few years they had been dating.

“I guess,” Mei smirked. “But regardless, it looks like it’ll take you awhile until you can find a suitable nickname to call me by.”

There was a short moment of silence before Mei noticed determination flash in Yuzu’s eyes, almost as if a lightbulb went off in her head.

“Did something occur to you?” Mei asked.

“Beansprout!” Yuzu confidently said, “I mean you said you wanted me to just call you by your actual name and well...your name means sprout so, I figured why not?” 

“Of course you would be the one to make even nicknames literal,” the younger girl murmured under her breath, albeit smiling a bit. After all, she’d be lying if she wasn’t at least a little grateful or amused at the effort Yuzu was making in something Mei deemed trivial. “Besides, I’m already taller than you.” 

“Don't think I didn't see that smile,” Yuzu grinned.

“You didn’t see anything.” Mei attempted to turn her head away to hide the even redder blush spreading throughout her face. But Yuzu kept her in place, both hands holding either side of Mei’s head.

There wasn’t anything wrong with keeping up this charade, right?

“Anyway, are you feeling a little better, dumpling?” the older girl asked, brushing a thumb across Mei’s cheek.

Mei groaned in response at Yuzu’s persistence, but failed to hide her smile this time. Maybe the older girl would find names that fit in the moment or maybe continue with others that seemed far-fetched, like the dumpling one. They weren’t perfect, but Mei appreciated every single one them.

“So, I'm just a meal to you?” Mei smirked as she shot a glance at her girlfriend, knowing exactly what she was getting herself into

Yuzu chuckled in response, leaning in to place a kiss on Mei’s lips. “You’re a really tasty meal, I can tell you that,” she smiled after pulling away. 

“Want to have a taste to make sure?” Mei pulled her in for another kiss, shifting to lay on her back as she pulled Yuzu on top.

“Gladly,” Yuzu said before closing the distance. 

And with that, it was safe to say the two did more than cuddling on the couch that day.


	3. From 1 to 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a horrible fire, Yuzu and Mei deal with the loss of a close friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Death of Someone Close 
> 
> From Rolex - I speed wrote this cause I thought...uh, why not lol. And I swear I have something planned for Yuzu's birthday, even if I'm probably going to be 5 years late ><

"What is this?" Mei flatly asked as she stared at the round white plush Yuzu was holding. 

"Well, um..." the other girl sheepishly tried to explain, "Since you lost Kumagorou after Udagawa's boarding house accidentally burned down during that one trip, we all thought maybe this will cheer you up!" 

Mei didn't respond. She simply inspected the white, rather fluffy looking plush. It had two black, beady eyes and a line connecting the two dots together. It took her a few seconds to figure out that was most likely supposed to be its mouth. To be honest, as sweet Yuzu's gesture was, she didn't know if this...whatever it was supposed to be...could ever come close to taking Kumagorou's place. 

About a few weeks ago, Matsuri had suggested the whole gang have another summer sleepover trip at Udagawa's boarding house again. The trip would be a nice and relaxing few days for everyone to spend time together before everyone left for college. Matsuri would always say she only suggested it since she had nothing better to do over the summer. But Yuzu and Harumi could easily see that Matsuri didn’t want to admit she would miss all her friends after they graduate. 

The trip was meant to be just a simple and enjoyable vacation, that is, until someone had accidentally left the stove on in the kitchen. Momokino woke to the smell of gas, and when she inspected the house even further to check what was wrong, she nearly walked into a room of flames. Upon seeing this, she immediately informed Udagawa and the two quickly evacuated everyone out of the building. But as soon as Mei and Yuzu were out, safe and sound, the younger girl had realized she left her favorite stuffed bear inside their room. 

After the flames had been put out, almost all of their belongings had been destroyed: Harumi’s luggage, Momokino’s favorite dress, Matsuri’s cell phone, Nene’s notebook of HaruYuzu fanfiction she brought for some strange reason despite already knowing Yuzu and Mei are dating, and worst of all for Mei, Kumagorou.  
When the younger girl recovered her stuffed bear, he was beyond recognition. His ears were charred, his face was almost completely gone, and most of his limbs were missing. To add to that, his once-brown fur was now charred black. Everyone around her, including Yuzu, said she could no longer keep him anymore in that condition.

But Mei still clung onto Kumagorou.

Even after bringing him home, hoping to have her stepmother fix him up, Ume unfortunately told her that Kumagorou was beyond repair. At that point, it finally registered to Mei that it was hopeless, and her bear was gone. The hardest part for her was having to throw him in the trash. 

And after countlessly repeating herself to Yuzu that Kumagorou could never be replaced, it didn’t stop the older girl from offering her the white plush toy in an effort to cheer her up.

But the longer Mei didn't respond, the more Yuzu began to feel as if she had annoyed, or even offended, the other girl. She knew how much Kumagorou meant to her, with him being a gift from her father and almost being like an actual member of the family. 

Maybe finding a replacement so soon wasn't exactly the best idea. 

Mei reached out and felt the white plush in Yuzu’s hands. 

Her expression softened upon the contact, and she sighed, "You can't replace Kumagorou, but I appreciate the gift." 

It was the exact response Yuzu expected. 

Lowering the plush, she responded, "I know, but it sucks seeing you constantly stare at the empty seat at the dinner table." 

"I never should've brought him..." Mei muttered, "It's all my fault he's gone now." 

"Hey, it's not your fault!" the other girl assured. "Nobody knew the stove was on overnight. If anyone is blaming themselves the most, it's Udagawa." 

After the incident, and after the repairs were implemented for a new boarding house, the whole gang, especially Udagawa, spent days, even weeks, finding a new replacement for Mei. Even after buying a new bear that looked exactly like Kumagorou, it wasn't exactly the same. To Mei, she wasn't looking at a new Kumagorou, just another stuffed bear. Momokino suggested that, rather than replacing her best friend's bear, Mei needed something new that would remind her of Kumagorou, but also help her move on. 

They tried giving her a variety of different plushies and stuffed animals that would help fill the void. Momokino gave her a tiger, but those weren't exactly Mei's favorite animals. Shiraho tried giving her a stuffed dragon, but Mei only found herself drawn away from its face. Matsuri attempted to give her a life-size yuzubocchi plush, but Mei immediately walked away the moment she saw its face. 

"I just thought if it reminded her of Yuzu, then she'd be more likely to keep it and stop thinking about her old bear so much," Matsuri once said. "What the hell am I supposed to do with this now?" 

Even to this day, Matsuri was still trying to figure out a use for the life-size yuzubochii sitting at her house. 

As Mei continued staring at the white plush, she became more confused, figuring out exactly what it was and why Yuzu got it in particular. 

"He’s not exactly supposed to replace Kumagorou, and he’s not the same size as him,” Yuzu said as she held up the white plush again, “but I thought maybe he could give you the same comfort Kumagorou did when he was around. And look!” Yuzu added as she squeezed the item in her hands, “he’s soft just like Kumagorou!”

The younger girl began inspecting the plush again. “Hmm...maybe I could get used to this one.” She didn’t know exactly what it was, but Mei felt herself curiously drawn to keeping Yuzu’s gift. “We’ll just need a name for him.” 

Yuzu beamed, surprised, but glad that her girlfriend accepted her gift. “Really Mei? You want to keep him?” 

Mei nodded in response. 

“Then you don’t need to worry about a name! He already has one!” 

“He does?” 

“Mhmm!” She held the item closer to Mei’s face and cleared her throat, preparing herself to recite signature lines the white plush was always known for, “Hello! I am Baymax, your personal healthcare assistant.” She reverted back to her normal tone, “He’s that one robot from that movie with the superheroes! Isn’t he cute!” 

Of course, Yuzu, of all people would find strange things such as this to be cute. But to Mei’s surprise, she’d be lying if she said she didn’t find Baymax a little cute.

“Now…” the older began, using her best Baymax impression, “On a scale from 1 to 10, how would you rate your pain?” 

Mei stood silent, and after a few seconds, finally registered that Yuzu was directly asking her that question. 

“Zero?” the younger girl answered.

“You seem unsure about your answer,” Yuzu pointed out. 

“Well I was unsure if you were actually directing that question towards me.” 

“I was,” Yuzu smiled. “Now let me ask you again, on a scale from 1 to 10, how would you rate your pain?” 

The younger girl questioned why Yuzu was repeating the same question to her again. Without hesitation, she answered, “Zero.” 

“You sure about that? I mean...I’m not just talking about physical pain, you know?” 

Mei sighed, then averted her eyes in embarrassment. Here she was, an 18 year-old still feeling sad over losing her favorite teddy bear. Despite Yuzu telling her it was okay to feel sad over the loss of her favorite bear, she felt a little ridiculous for grieving over something so seemingly petty. 

“Mei?” 

“Sorry,” Mei apologized, “I spaced out a little.” She paused for a moment, thinking about Yuzu’s question. Bashfully, she admitted, “Okay...maybe a 2 or 3. I guess I still miss Kumagorou.” 

“And that’s okay,” Yuzu reassured again, “I know how much he meant to you,” she then began fidgeting with Baymax’s arms, “So...is there anything I...or we,” adding Baymax, “can do to make you feel better?”

Mei directed her eyes back at Yuzu. “Um, a kiss would be nice.”

To her surprise, Mei felt fabric on her cheek. It wasn’t what she expected, but she still felt a peculiar fuzziness develop in her chest. When Yuzu pulled Baymax away, she noticed the odd way her girlfriend was staring at her. Misinterpreting Mei’s expression, Yuzu began to think she may have made the wrong move.

“D-Did I do something wrong? I’m sorry!” the older girl hastily apologized, causing Mei to raise a brow. “I know I said this wasn’t supposed to replace Kumagorou, and here I am acting like he never existed!” She frantically ran a hand through her hair and began muttering, chastising herself.

“No, I loved it,” Mei assured, causing the older girl to calm down, “And I love the gift too. It’s just…” she leaned in closer to the blonde’s face, “I want a kiss from you,” then closed the distance. 

Baymax wasn’t Kumagorou, but the fact he came from Yuzu was more than enough for Mei.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Baymax belongs to Big Hero 6 and all rights belong to Disney


	4. Lazing Around

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Having a lazy day (sorta)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I read the last chapter...and don't worry this oneshot isn't a spoiler or anything lol, but I just wanted to say that after reading the final chapter, boi do I have more ideas cooking up in my brain...especially of the fluff variety (angST WHOM? DrAma whaT?) 
> 
> I still have every intention of finishing up Glass Memories the same way Mizutanitony has every intention of finishing up his story, Uncomfortable Truths, despite not completely following through with the canon. But hey, it's fanfiction lol so anything is possible XD 
> 
> So, about this one, I rushed my way into writing this oneshot. It's not really anything special but I've been using this fic collection that ArcanicSoul started up to help me brush up on writing in general and keep my creative drive going in some way. Expect some errors here and there in this chapter. But anyway, hope you guys enjoy~

“Thank goodness,” Mei muttered to herself in relief as she approached the front door of her and Yuzu’s apartment. 

From managing several different projects all at once among each of her classes, combined with simultaneously studying for exams, the only word Mei could describe her day was...exhausting. There were some issues in some of her class projects where certain members in her group were difficult to contact. And the fact they were all in university made it even worse. If this had been high school, she could see some situations as mere exceptions. But this was college, where students were supposed to act more like adults and at least be a little more responsible. 

But so far, she almost acted like a babysitter for each of her class projects.

Actually, exhausting would be an understatement to say the least. 

Was the word strenuous? Draining? Arduous?

It didn’t even matter to Mei. The moment she unlocked the door and walked inside, she dropped all her belongings to the side and collapsed on the couch. There were several assignments she needed to finish, and Mei internally groaned for reminding herself. It was times like these that made her wonder how exactly she was able to deal with the stress of balancing her student council duties with her studies. Feeling her eyelids weigh down over her, Mei let her fatigue take over, and felt herself drift to sleep. 

“Mei?” 

Yuzu’s voice had woken her up. 

In response, the younger woman mumbled something along the lines of, “I’m home”. 

She heard Yuzu chuckle and felt her lay on the couch next to her. Although the space was a bit cramped, the older woman adjusted herself accordingly and rested her head along Mei’s shoulder. She brought her hand around Mei’s head, while the other woman shifted in order to place her arm on Yuzu’s stomach. 

After a few seconds, Yuzu asked, “How was your day today?” 

Mei grumbled in response, causing the older woman to chuckle. 

“Not so great today?” 

“I assume you’ve had better experiences working in group projects,” Mei replied, deadpan.

She went on about how often she contacted her group members, both through messages and in-person, but with little to no avail. Most of the responses she got back were either “taking care of their part later”, “they’re busy with work or other classes to worry about it now”, or her favorite response: caring about the project at the very last minute when the whole thing is due. One incident that nearly made her want to tear her hair out was when one of her group members said he was too busy to work on the project over a weekend because he went hiking. 

“They’re insufferable,” Mei sighed in exasperation, “And I’m almost tempted to omit their names in the finished product.”

“Ah, so it’s about those again,” Yuzu laughed. “And to answer your question, I’ve had my fair share of…” she paused, trying to find a word that would best describe her previous experiences working in group projects, “...challenging experiences.”

“Is that so?” the younger woman’s curiosity piqued. This came as a surprise to Mei, knowing that her girlfriend was more adept at being around and getting along with multiple people. She figured that maybe there were some days where even Yuzu would lose her patience with some people. “Then tell me how were you able to deal with that?”

Yuzu pondered for a moment, remembering all the times she had to work on some group assignment. 

“Well...the best advice I can probably give you is be as patient as possible with your teammates, try and send them a heads up or two if they’re not really following through with deadlines, and if those two don’t work, then maintain yourself from the temptation of erasing their names on the final project,” Yuzu elaborated, gritting her teeth at the frustration.

Mei let out a small laugh and hugged Yuzu tighter, nuzzling her nose in her hair. 

“Your frustration with losing patience with your group members makes me wonder how you were able to deal with me after all these years.”

“Well…” Yuzu happily grinned, before poking her girlfriend on the nose, “You’re an exception.”

“Am I really?” she asked, “Because last time I remembered, you said something along the lines of dating Harumi if you ever had the chance.”

Yuzu sheepishly chuckled. Despite that being a joke, she couldn’t help but feel a little guilty for mentioning that at all. Before things grew much more stable in their relationship, Yuzu noticed how often Mei held a silent contempt towards almost anyone who seemed to slightly get along with her. 

“Like as a friend you know!” she stammered. “Me and Harumin are best friends but you know I love you!” Yuzu huddled close to Mei, gripping her in a tight hug in an effort to make her forget about the earlier subject.

“I was just poking fun, Yuzu,” Mei teased as she melted into the hug. 

Yuzu sighed in relief, glad that she didn't unintentionally upset her girlfriend. 

It was a nice comfortable feeling, simply laying on the couch with Yuzu. Mei asked herself why she never had more moments such as these back then. She exhaled in relief, burying her nose in Yuzu’s hair. But unfortunately, in the midst of the relaxing moment, Mei caught a glimpse of the clock right across from them. 

Though it was the start of their weekend, the time only reminded Mei, much to her reluctance, of the work she needed to finish. 

“Hey where do you think you’re going?” Yuzu whined in disappointment the moment Mei got up. 

“To finish work.” It was her authoritative student-council president voice again. “I want to make sure I have enough time for our date tomorrow.” 

Yuzu opened her mouth to protest, but remembered that she spent the whole day finishing up her class assignments before coming home. According to Mei, her rest would be well-deserved. And the two had already made reservations at the fancy French restaurant Yuzu wanted to try out for quite some time. It’d be a shame if they skipped out on that all because of school.

“Fiiiinnneee,” Yuzu replied in a childlike tone. 

Once Mei had gotten her things, she decided to work on the small coffee table in front of the couch, much to Yuzu’s surprise. 

“I thought you’d be working on your desk?” 

Turning her head to face Yuzu from behind, she simply said, “Maybe you can help me finish faster?” 

A wide grin spread across the blonde’s face. Getting down from the couch, Yuzu wrapped her arms around Mei’s shoulders from behind and rested her chin there. She then settled her arms to wrap around Mei’s stomach, occasionally sneaking in light pecks on the cheek whenever she saw her girlfriend struggle to continue. 

Usually, working on schoolwork would typically take Mei about three hours to finish everything. But with Yuzu cuddling up to her side, she may as well be able to finish in only one.


	5. The Truth Is In the Tea - Part I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Dealing with children (sorta) 
> 
> Mei, Yuzu, and their kids have some unexpected visitors.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Featuring OCs from me (Hiroki), punklobster/smxmuffinpeddling/angel0wonder (Anzu), and lunarjumper on Tumblr (Hikaru). 
> 
> Hope y'all enjoy...cause it's about damn time I wrote about these kids XD

It was another ordinary day at the Aihara-Okogi household.

Mei was working on some paperwork in her study that dealt with some concerns about the finances of the academy. On the other hand, Yuzu was busy cooking lunch for the rest of the family, while their kids were all playing a game on the new console their Aunt Matsuri had bought them a while ago.

Or at least...their two sons were playing, while their youngest daughter sat on the couch, minding her own business.

“I win again!” Hikaru victoriously shouted, not before shooting a smug face at his younger brother, Hiroki.

“Hey, no fair!” the younger boy whined. He crossed his arms and huffed, frustrated that his brother had won yet again. “You can’t use the same move on me again and again, that’s cheating!”

“That’s not cheating,” Hikaru smugly pointed out as he poked his younger brother on the forehead. “It’s called having skill...which _you_ don’t have.”

Hiroki grumbled, crossing his arms even tighter as he sent a scorching glare deep into his older brother’s emerald eyes. If Hikaru did have skill, he wouldn’t be relying on the same attack over and over again. If only he could just wipe that smug grin off his face. The dark haired boy shot his head to the couch where their younger sister, Anzu, was tending to her large green stuffed-dinosaur. Wanting a second opinion, Hiroki asked, “Anzu, isn’t that cheating?”

The 7 year-old looked up at her two brothers with an unamused face, almost annoyed that she was being dragged into one of their little arguments again.

“I don’t know,” she simply answered, “I wasn’t watching.” She automatically went back to playing with her stuffed dinosaur, ignoring the rest of her older brothers’ banter.

“Mom!” Hiroki yelled from the living room. “Hikaru is being mean again!”

“Hikaru, be nice,” Yuzu scolded from the kitchen while she was still preparing their lunch.

“Fine,” Hikaru told his younger brother, “How about one more game? And I won’t ‘cheat’,” he added air quotes, “this time.”

They were about to return to their game until they heard the doorbell ring.

Yuzu shot her head up while she was in the middle of stirring the soup on the stove.

“Oh, they’re already here,” Yuzu said to herself. “Mama and Papa said they’d be running late but…” She yelled from the kitchen, “Kids! Can one of you get the door? Your grandparents should be here now!”

“Okay!” Hiroki enthusiastically answered. He quickly got up and headed straight for the front door, excited that he'd get to see his grandma and grandpa again.

As soon as his brother left, Hikaru set the game controller on the floor and caught a waft of his mother’s cooking. He could probably kill some time for a bit until Hiroki came back.

Getting up from the floor, Hikaru walked to the kitchen, being greeted with the multiple dishes his mother made. His eyes were immediately glued to the variety of foods. From the fried meats in the pork-cutlet bowls to the steaming porridge centered at the table, everything looked absolutely mouth-watering. He eyed the tiramisu on the side, then darted his eyes between his mother and the sweet desert. As long as Yuzu wasn’t looking, he wasn’t hurting anybody. And it was almost lunch time, so satiating his hunger for a bit wouldn’t hurt. Yuzu’s back was still facing the stove, and it didn’t seem like she was going to turn around any time soon.

The coast was clear, giving Hikaru an ample opportunity. He was about to sneak in a taste of the desert on the dining table until…

“Ow!” Pain shot from the back of his head.

“Don’t think I didn’t see you clawing your little fingers on desert. Remember, that’s for the whole family, and your grandparents aren’t even here yet,” Yuzu reprimanded.

“How did you even see me?” Hikaru asked, dumbfounded. “Your back was turned just a few seconds ago!”

Yuzu gave him a cheeky grin and replied, “I have eyes on the back of my head and...I’m your mother. It’s my job to know everything about you, Hiroki, and Anzu.”

Hikaru grumbled to himself, feeling the spot on his head where his mom smacked him.

“Why do we have to make all this stuff for Gramps and Grandma Ume?” Hikaru casually asked, “Isn’t this a little too much for a casual lunch?”

Yuzu finished setting the stewpot on the table and answered, “Your mother and I thought it would be nice to have something special for your grandparents especially since we don’t see them as often.” She placed a kiss on the spot where she hit him. “So, I want you to be on your best behavior when they get here. Can you do that?”

“Okay…” he sighed. “I just don’t want Gramps scratching me with his beard again, or Grandma pinching my cheeks!” He began rubbing his cheeks, still feeling the pain from the last time they met up with them.

“I can’t guarantee they’ll listen to me or your mom if we tell them not to do that,” Yuzu chuckled, “You three can be devils, but you’re so darn cute!” she grinned before pinching his cheek.

“Mama!” Hikaru whined as he tried to shove her hands away, “C’mon, I’m 12 years-old! Don't you think I'm a little too old for you to keep doing these things?”

The blonde woman laughed. She immediately loosened her grip, and began brushing her thumb on her son’s cheek to relieve the pinching from earlier.

“I’m sorry,” Yuzu apologized, “And I’m sorry for hitting you earlier.”

“Mom! Mama…” Hiroki called. Yuzu looked up with concern, detecting the uncertainty in her son’s voice. She began heading to front door of their house, with Hikaru following behind her, finding Mei on her way in the same direction.

Mei paused in her tracks for a moment and looked at Yuzu in confusion, wondering who was at the front door. If their parents were here, the two would’ve most likely heard Hiroki laughing from Mei’s dad lifting him from the ground and squeezing him. Externally, the younger woman just had a brow raised, confused but concerned about her son’s safety, while maintaining her composure. But internally, her heart was racing, and Yuzu could notice the subtle trembling in her wife’s hands.

Yuzu mirrored her expression and shared the same sentiment, but unlike the younger woman’s calm facade, Mei saw how fast Yuzu scurried over to where Hiroki was standing, causing her to follow immediately afterward.

“Hiroki?” Mei asked before looking up to face their visitors, “What’s....” the two women froze at the sight before them, “...wrong?”

Mei immediately clutched onto Hiroki’s shoulders and protectively put an arm in front of him. The two women standing outside didn’t look hostile, but Mei’s motherly instincts wouldn’t take any chances.

She quickly turned to Yuzu to check if she was seeing the same thing as her.

Yuzu stood speechless, unable to process the sight before her.

Maybe those late night hours working on paperwork must have gotten to Mei, and the fumes from the kitchen were probably messing with Yuzu’s perception. Was this a dream? An illusion? Or someone playing a prank on them? Yuzu wanted to rub her eyes just to check if what she saw wasn’t just a hallucination, but she could barely move a muscle. On the other hand, Mei felt as if she was staring at a mirror. Or at least, that’s what she wanted to believe.

The other two women were just as shocked to see them them as well, and it wouldn’t be far-fetched to say that someone placed a large mirror on the their front door as some ridiculous prank. But if it was just a simple prank, then their kids would also be “standing outside”.

Instead, the blonde woman in front of the family, was carrying a toddler, who appeared to be a few years younger than Anzu, while a young boy, no older than Hiroki was standing in between the two women, staring oddly at their son.

The kid staring at their son looked almost identical to him, but still had some notable differences. His hair was more straight, less ruffled, and his eyes weren’t the same shade of violet as Hiroki’s. What was even stranger was how much that boy carried many similar physical features as Mei. It was almost concerning. But despite those differences, he could almost pass off as Hiroki’s twin brother.

“Are Grandma and Grandpa here yet?” Anzu asked as she was walking towards the front door. She stopped in her tracks and as she confusingly stared at the two women standing outside. “Mommy? Momma? Why are you standing outside?” then dropped her stuffed dinosaur when she looked at her two mothers, standing right beside her. Her head darted back-and-forth between the women standing outside and her moms. She rubbed her eyes, making sure her eyes weren't deceiving her. But she still saw double. “Huh? What’s going on?”

Hiroki looked at his identical ‘twin’ and just saw a potential new friend to play with. He fidgeted with his fingers for moment and looked up at his dark-haired mother, unsure if it was appropriate for him to say anything in this situation. He then took another look at the boy standing in front of him. He appeared calm, and despite his bewilderment, seemed eager to meet Hiroki. The other boy didn’t look mean, so Hiroki simply thought, what was the harm in getting to know him more?

Attempting to break the awkward tension, Hiroki paused his fidgeting, took a deep breath, and welcomed his ‘identical’ twin. “Um...hi! My name is Aihara Hiroki!” he greeted, adding a shy wave, “What’s your name?”

The boy looked at him curiously, fiddling with his fingers on the hem of his shirt. He looked up to his moms, then towards the women and kids standing in front of him. Though he initially felt tense and uncertain, just staring at the couple standing in front of his mothers made him feel at home.

After registering the situation, Hideki then smiled, almost ignoring the rather bizarre situation he was in. He remembered all the stories his mothers told him about their past, and how he came into the world. For an ordinary 10 year-old boy, he would’ve been just as speechless as the rest of the people standing around him. But with everything he learned from his mom’s complicated marriage with his father, his mothers’ complicated relationship and their messy past, and the birth of his younger sister, it was safe to say that the situation right before him was honestly nothing.

“I’m Udagawa Hideki!” he replied as he outstretched his hand. “Nice to meet you!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate myself for being bombarded with so many WIPs in my Google doc lol. Writing as Zoop Top used to be a lot easier. I'd just start with one fic, spend a few days writing and editing, and then bam, I post. As Rolex, it's just..."YOU GET A WIP, YOU GET A WIP, YOU GET A WIP, EVERYONE GETS WIPs!" ...I'm a mess. 
> 
> I would like to thank ArcanicSoul for creating this fic collection. At least I have a place to store some of my slightly unpolished/rushed works. I felt bad for having to clog up the citrus category with all my oneshots so I think I might just stick to a few collections for now, and also I should really go back to focusing on my huge multichapter fic. 
> 
> Anyway, here is my 9pm, showerthoughts, fever dream-induced, short series, The Truth Is In the Tea (featuring characters from Mizutanitony's citrus fanfic, Uncomfortable Truths). I really hoped I got your characters right ^^; This was originally going to be its own separate fic, but because of how much of a disorganized mess my brain has been lately when it comes to writing fics in general, ive been producing and coming out with word vomit. I also felt like this was maybe a good place to start with me trying to ease into writing and introducing Yuzu and Mei's kids (for my fic-verse), especially since 2 of the characters don't belong to me. I know it feels kinda rushed (there are probably some more errors I couldn't catch), and I did my best at writing tension with this...rather surreal situation, but I just threw whatever I had in together and thought, "aight" Plus, my brain really has been stretched thin lately, so I don't think it would've been a good idea for me to focus on too many multichapter stories all at once.....One is already a nightmare ><
> 
> I actually don't know if I'll ever get around to completely finishing it, hence why I decided to take the safe-route and just post whatever I had in this fic collection. I'm still gonna label parts for this mini-series in case I ever get around to wanting to write more for it. 
> 
> Who knows?


	6. One's First Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AU: Falling in Love (kinda)

Yuzu never understood love.

Even with all the love stories in the manga she immersed herself in, she could never experience that unexplainable “butterflies in the stomach” feeling she always craved. The lack almost felt frustrating.

That wasn’t to say she never dated or engaged in any relationships for that matter. The only true relationship she ever recalled was with another student who’s name she expunged from her memory. Anything to rid herself of the painful thoughts.

In all honesty, Yuzu couldn’t quite remember why her relationship with that student fell apart. But it made one thing clear to her.

Love made no sense.

She never had another serious relationship after that heartbreak. Though, Yuzu tried to be optimistic. Her younger, bright, cheerful side would’ve given love another chance. However, each new person she came across only brought back her name and her face. The blonde often scolded herself every time she fell back.

 _Honestly, she’s probably forgotten about you. You’re better off without her_ , Yuzu tried to rationalize.

It took 10 years until she finally wiped her memories clean. She was finally in a good place for once! No more unwanted memories of the past haunting her. She couldn’t even remember why it took so long for her to forget something so miniscule from high school. But that didn’t matter. What mattered was her life in the present.

She was recently offered a job as an editor for the relatively new Indigo Publishing Company. It was only about 3 years old, but heard amazing stories like how it climbed towards its success. After graduating college, Yuzu always jumped around from company to company, trying to find stable ground. The working conditions, attitudes of the employees, and lack of enthusiasm from her previous jobs kept her moving. And they all led her here. Yuzu felt lucky.

Actually, no. She couldn’t thank luck for where she was now. She got here all on her own.

Puffing up her chest with the utmost confidence, bag strapped tightly on her shoulder, she looked up the towering skyscraper, and walked into the building. An assistant at the front desk politely greeted her and escorted Yuzu to the main office where she would be starting.

When they were in the elevator, the assistant gave a brief overview on the history of how the publishing company was founded. Apparently, the head of the company was part of some prestigious, high class family and only recently decided to go against her family’s wishes and start something of her own.

“She must’ve been really brave to do that,” Yuzu complimented.

“She’s an amazing woman,” the assistant replied, “Wait until you meet her. Judging from what you’ve told me about yourself, I feel like you two would get along really well.”

Once they finally reached the main office, the two made their way to greet Yuzu’s new boss.

“Miss, your new editor has arrived.”

Her new boss was obscured through stacks, but called out from behind that she would be on her way.

“Nice to meet you, I am Okogi Yuzu. I wanted to thank you for having me be part of your company,” she introduced herself formally with a bow. Proper and formal. It would give her the impression of a reliable new employee.

Finally, a fresh start. For once in her life, things were finally making sense.

“Yuzu?” a familiar voice said.

That voice sounded too familiar. Yuzu’s ears couldn’t be deceiving her.

She slowly rose up to face this new boss of her’s, almost passing out from the revelation.

Dark locks settled at her shoulders and amethyst eyes gazed into Yuzu’s presence.

No wonder it took her so long to forget the memory. That person she dated, that person she loved and ultimately broke her heart…was her younger step-sister.

“Mei?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating to the collection has been changed since the first chapter is literally the only one that has smut lmao. I actually wrote this awhile ago before Ch 36 came out and had no idea if Mei and Yuzu would "break up". But anyway, this AU was loosely based off Sekaiichi Hatsukoi (aka one of the very few yaoi I actually liked lol). I didn't really have much of a plan for this AU since I didn't really know where to go from here...so this is all I got 
> 
> Also I figured I could add this to the collection, so here y'all go~


	7. Simple Desire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had too many fic collections and needed to focus on only a few XD

When they were in high school, every time Yuzu rolled to Mei’s side of the bed or instinctively wrapped her arms around her, the younger girl would always shove the blonde back to her side of the bed. 

There would be nights where she’d wake up to Yuzu’s snoring. Other times, Mei’s slumber would be interrupted through feeling Yuzu’s leg propped over her. Or in some cases, she’d find the blonde’s entire body lying limp on top of her. The worst part during those times was the insane amount of body heat the older girl sometimes had. It almost made Yuzu feel like a sauna on some days. 

Back then, the younger girl wondered how she would ever deal with living, let alone, sleeping with someone like Yuzu.

But now, as adults, all of Yuzu’s “irritating” bed quirks were the kinds that Mei expected…and wake up smiling to.

“Mmm...” Mei mumbled as her arms attempted to tighten her hold on her girlfriend. But when her arms wrapped around nothing, her face frowned. Brushing an arm on the other side of the bed, Mei reached out for Yuzu, hoping to regain the warmth she always craved--hoping to bury her face in the older woman’s neck and fall asleep to her intoxicating scent. 

But again, she felt nothing. 

Her eyes shot open and realized Yuzu wasn't lying beside her.

Mei sighed and slowly sat up on their bed, feeling the room cooler than usual. She looked down and realized her chest and entire body was bare. When she looked down on the side of her bed, Mei found her nightwear, bra, and panties scattered across the floor. The younger woman ran her hands through her hair, trying to remember what happened the night before. It took a few seconds for her to register that she and Yuzu had partaken in their usual nightly activities. 

Images of Yuzu on top of her, heavily panting and sweating, repeatedly grinding herself into Mei while the younger woman clawed at her back, ignited a spark of arousal between her legs. Mei brought her knees together and recollected her thoughts, attempting to recall the details of last night. Initially, Mei had the upper hand, having almost complete control in how much she made Yuzu writhe and squirm under her. 

She was so sure she relieved Yuzu’s stress, especially after how busy and stretched-thin the older woman had been for the past few weeks. But Yuzu had proven her wrong, and quickly switched their positions only a few seconds after recovering from her orgasm.

Mei remembered Yuzu pinning her wrists on the bed while she slowly she dragged her tongue up her throat. She remembered Yuzu nibbling her ear as she teased the younger woman’s slick walls. And she remembered the hickeys and love bites Yuzu gave her as she pushed herself into the older woman’s hand, desperately begging for her to go deeper inside.

The last thing she remembered was screaming Yuzu’s name before everything went black.

As Mei felt her neck, she made a mental note to herself to wear her scarves more often to work, despite the fact it was still summer.

Mei grabbed ahold of the blanket on her lap and pulled it over her chest. The room was still dark, but she checked the clock on her nightstand to see if Yuzu had gone to work early. 

The time read 4:32 AM. 

It was a little too early. And if Mei remembered correctly, Yuzu said she’d have a day off today, a Friday, leaving the older woman with a comfortable three-day weekend.

Mei stifled a yawn, then settled herself back in bed, hoping to catch up on more sleep. But instead, she lied on her side and stared at Yuzu’s side of the bed. With her fingertips dancing upon the empty side, Mei patiently waited for Yuzu to come back. 

Not a moment passed, and the younger woman perked up after hearing the bedroom door shut.

Mei sat up a little, finding Yuzu clad in a bathrobe.

“Oh, Mei!” Yuzu whispered, surprised to see her girlfriend awake at these hours. “I'm sorry, did I wake you?”

Mei shook her head, then asked, “Why are you up this early?” 

“I was thirsty, so I went to get a glass of water,” Yuzu answered, trying to suppress a yawn. She grinned, then teased, “You didn’t miss me too much did you?”

Instead of words, Mei shyly outstretched her arms, signaling for Yuzu to come back and lie beside her. The older woman chuckled, admiring how cute her girlfriend was being. Wasting no more time, Yuzu began approaching their bed and grabbed Mei’s hands, interlacing their fingers. She held them up to her chest, smiling warmly as she gazed deep into Mei’s amethyst eyes. 

As Yuzu pulled up her leg to rest on the bed, she leaned into Mei even closer, closing the distance between them. Both simultaneously sighed with relief, feeling their energy reinvigorate through a mere chaste kiss. Bringing her other leg up on the bed, Yuzu sat up on her knees, moving her hands up to cradle the younger woman’s face. The two continued kissing until Mei gently pushed Yuzu’s shoulder back, eying the older woman’s bathrobe. 

“Hmm? What’s wrong?” Yuzu asked. 

To answer her question, Mei tugged at Yuzu’s robe, revealing a bare shoulder. She eyed at her lover’s skin hungrily, feeling heat radiate throughout her face, before leaning in to bite at the spot. 

Yuzu’s breath hitched in her throat, giving Mei the cue to keep going. Wrapping her arms around the older woman’s back, Mei brought Yuzu in as close as she could, feeling much of the bathrobe fabric against her skin. But Mei wanted to feel more than just fabric. As the younger woman left a trail of bites and kisses from her shoulder up to her neck, she felt Yuzu’s hands reach downwards to undo the knot on her robe. But Mei stopped her. 

“Let me…” she muttered before gently scraping her teeth against Yuzu’s shoulder. 

Slowly, Mei tugged at the belt, undoing the knot and pushed the robe over her lover’s shoulders, revealing more skin. Yuzu stared back at her with lidded eyes. Despite the dimly lit room, Mei could easily sense Yuzu’s flushed face. Once the older woman freed her arms from the robe, Mei dropped it on the floor, hypnotically staring at the expanse of skin and curves on her lover’s body. 

It was a sight that Mei always relished, always adored. Yet, the longer she continued staring at Yuzu, not kissing or touching her, the older woman couldn't help but subconsciously shield herself away. 

“Sorry,” Yuzu sheepishly apologized. She clutched the bed sheets around her, hoping to resist the urge to conceal her body. 

“Don’t be,” Mei reassured. Reaching out, she took her lover’s hands into her own and began brushing her thumbs along the back of Yuzu’s hand. “Though, I’m surprised. With how long we’ve been together, I thought it would still be me always wanting to hide away.” 

“I guess old habits die hard,” she chuckled. 

Though the younger woman had seen Yuzu’s naked body countless times, the sight never got old to her. Every time she saw the older woman’s bare frame, Mei would always be left speechless. The first time they shared themselves so openly to each other like this, she remembered how Yuzu self-consciously covered herself despite the fact she was initiating that whole time. Mei was the same as well, instinctively shrinking away as she felt the embarrassment of being so open, so vulnerable. But even though it had become routine to see each other’s bodies whenever the two made love, there were some nights Mei would notice how uneasy Yuzu would be when revealing herself. They should've gotten more used to each other by now, especially with how long they'd been together. 

But despite how long they had been together, Mei always thought back to the things Yuzu told her when they shared their first time.

On that night, Yuzu had admitted to Mei that she was a bit jealous of her beauty. She wished she had her silky black hair, her smooth and clear pale skin, her supple breasts…

People had always told her she was pretty and attractive, but Yuzu...she was beautiful, and extraordinarily so. It was why Mei never understood why the blonde wished she could be more like her. If anything, Mei had fallen in love with her because Yuzu was...Yuzu.

No matter how much they grew older, no matter how much their bodies changed, whether it were for the better or worse, to Mei, Yuzu grew more and more beautiful in her eyes. 

Moving her hand to caress the older woman’s cheek, Mei whispered, “You're wonderful…” 

Taking Yuzu’s hand to her lips, Mei kissed the top, then the palm of her hand. Continuing the gesture, the younger woman trailed kisses from her hand, to her wrist, and up her arm, reaching Yuzu’s shoulder and neck. 

As Mei pulled her in closer, she wrapped her arms tighter around Yuzu and buried her face in the older woman’s neck. The two sighed in relief upon the skin to skin contact. 

Instinctively, Yuzu’s immediately breathed in the younger woman’s scent, feeling her initial insecurities melt away upon the smell.

They held each other for a moment, almost making up for the days they lost when they were separated. Mundane and ordinary gestures such as a simple hug, kiss, or cuddle was something neither of them would ever take for granted, especially Mei.

Pulling away, Mei gently pushed the older woman down on the sheets, then lowered herself on her side, planting kisses on Yuzu’s shoulder. Yuzu began softly giggling, absolutely relishing the attention her girlfriend was giving her at that moment. 

“Mei!” she laughed as she adjusted to lay on her side to face the younger woman. 

“Is something wrong?” Mei grinned, moving to pepper kisses all over Yuzu’s face.

“No,” she smiled as she tucked a strand of hair behind Mei’s ear, “You're perfect.” 

“I could say the same thing about you.” The younger woman’s reply caused a crimson blush to spread across Yuzu’s face. 

“And when did you get so romantic?” Yuzu cheekily asked, managing to stifle another yawn. She felt her eyelids weigh down on her as a result from her fatigue.

“I only learn from the best,” Mei smirked. “And I'm hoping that me being the perfect girlfriend also means I'm able to give you a perfect day today.” 

Yuzu’s eyes shot open at Mei’s last statement. 

“Wait...today?” Yuzu managed, trying to maintain her composure. Within a short few milliseconds, she mentally dug through her brain, trying to remember what could possibly be so important about today. Anniversary? First date? Second anniversary after the two reunited? What could it be? 

Not even a second passed, and the blonde went into full panic mode. “Oh crap! Did I forget about our anniversary?,” she hastily assumed, “I'm so sorry, work has been so hectic lately and I could've sworn I marked it on the calendar awhile ago!”

Immediately, Yuzu shot up from bed, grabbed her phone from her nightstand, and attempted to make some last minute plans to celebrate.

“Yuzu, wait-” 

But the older woman was already lost in her own thoughts.

“Ok, I just need to find the nearest fancy places we could go to...though I’m not entirely sure what you’re in the mood for…”

“Yuzu.” 

“Oh, and then maybe we could visit a few places around town, or maybe we can just have a picnic if we can’t find a fancy restaurant to go to…” she continued muttering to herself, mentally planning their whole day together. “And...oh crap! I didn’t even get you anything!”

“Yuzu…” 

“Should I get you flowers, or a new book you haven’t read before...or maybe something else…” Yuzu pondered to herself. 

“Yuzu!” Her pondering trance was broken the moment Mei placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to lower her phone onto her lap. “Our anniversary isn't for another few months,” Mei clarified, “Today is August 8th.” 

Yuzu just blinked. Once, then twice. 

When she continued staring owlishly at Mei, the younger woman took her face with both hands and closed the distance, hoping that gesture would make Yuzu remember.

“Mmph!” 

After a few seconds, Mei pulled away and greeted her. “Happy birthday.”

Yuzu opened her mouth to respond. That couldn't be right, she thought to herself.

She tried to deny that it wasn’t her birthday today. It couldn’t be. The last thing she remembered before leaving for work a few days ago was her boss giving her a well-deserved day-off on Friday. To Yuzu, she saw it as a blessing from her hectic work life to catch up on sleep. Hopefully, it would allow her to recharge by the time the weekend was over. But then she remembered her boss telling her yesterday to have a “happy 23rd tomorrow”, something that Yuzu didn’t initially understand as she was on her way heading home. 

She checked the date on her phone.

The date read August 8th.

Sighing, Yuzu quietly set her phone down on her nightstand and slunk back in the sheets the moment she realized that today was in fact her birthday.

“Oh geez…” She groaned, but felt herself relax in bed, glad that she wouldn’t have to deal with the stress of doing any last minute planning for an anniversary. “I can’t believe I forgot my own birthday! I guess work really has been stressful lately.” 

“Then that’s more of a reason for me to spoil you all day,” Mei chuckled as she traced a finger along the other woman’s arm. Following Yuzu, the younger woman then rested herself on the sheets beside her. “You don’t need to worry about any plans. I already have some things in mind we can do. Unless you have something else in mind. It is your day, after all.” 

Yuzu thought carefully about what she wanted to do to celebrate her birthday with her girlfriend. But the longer she thought about it, the more her incoming yawns and heavy fatigue clouded her decisions.

“Actually…” Yuzu suggested as she began cuddling up next to her girlfriend, “Ditch the plans. I’d rather just the spend the whole day lazing around in bed with you.”

“Are you sure about that?” Mei asked, almost sounding disappointed for not being able to provide the best birthday for Yuzu. Though, in retrospect, she was glad she wouldn’t have to cancel any important reservations for them both. 

Her lover nodded in response. As amazing as the gesture would have been coming from Mei, Yuzu’s hectic work week left her with little to no energy to do anything too crazy or spontaneous. She especially didn’t have much energy left after the activities from last night. 

“I don’t mind, and you did say today is my day, after all,” she paused to give Mei a quick kiss on the cheek. “Maybe next year you can showcase what amazing things you wanted to plan for me.” 

“I’m starting to think that the entirety of last night was your unofficial birthday present.” 

Yuzu almost burst out into laughter at the realization. “Then you don’t need to worry about giving me an amazing birthday at all!” Once she settled herself down, she reassured, “And don’t worry, Mei. We have next year, and the year after that, and after that…” she trailed off. 

She was right. The blonde’s words really made Mei think about the plans she wanted to unload on Yuzu. Every time there was an important date approaching, whether it be Yuzu’s birthday, a first date, or something as simple as whenever Yuzu received good grades in college, Mei would always make some grand gesture for her. In high school, she used to take Yuzu for granted, and was hoping that these things she would do for her would make up for all the mistakes she made throughout their relationship.

Yuzu understood why she did those things and why she always went out of her way to spoil her silly. But as much as she loved and appreciated the effort Mei always made for her, she wanted her to understand that even days where they spent time together indoors lazing around on the couch or in bed were also just as great.

“I'm not going anywhere,” Yuzu smiled.

“And neither am I,” the younger woman replied.

The room fell silent as the two laid side by side, staring at each other in awe. Both simultaneously pulled each other in, craving each other’s skin and warmth. They felt themselves ease into each other, with Mei nuzzling into the older woman’s neck once again while Yuzu rested her nose on the younger woman’s hair. Relaxing in each other’s arms, Yuzu began threading her fingers through the locks of Mei’s hair, something that often helped the younger woman easily drift to sleep. 

“Oh, and you also wanna know why you don’t have to worry so much about giving me a perfect birthday?” Yuzu said, breaking the silence of the atmosphere.

“Why is that?” Mei genuinely asked. 

“It’s because I have you!” she happily answered, before lowering her voice to a whisper, “And you’re more than enough for me.”


	8. A Lesson in Romance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get...playful ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slightly NSFW territory here, pals owo

It wasn't even supposed to be like this.

All Matsuri ever did was accidentally leave her gaming console at Yuzu and Mei’s apartment after randomly crashing there unexpectedly a month ago. And while the pink-haired girl mentioned a few times she would get it back to “escape the boredom of her home life”, it didn't seem like she would retrieve it anytime soon.

Mei didn't see a point in having the device at their place, seeing that it only served to be a distraction for them both...or at least for Yuzu. Even if Mei wanted to try out Matsuri’s gaming console, which was an extremely low possibility, she most likely wouldn't even know how to operate some of its functions.

Either way, the thing would only cause trouble for the both of them.

Such as right now.

“Yuzu…” Mei sighed, hoping to catch her attention for a third time. “Shouldn't you be studying?”

“Huh? What are you talking about?” The other girl turned around after pausing her game. “Don't you remember? I already finished studying a couple hours ago. You were helping me with some of those math problems I keep struggling with.”

“I did,” Mei acknowledged, “but I think you should be studying again. You've been staring at the television for almost 2 hours. Keep doing that and you may as well go blind,” she scolded.

“Don't worry, Mei,” she assured in her carefree tone, adding a little wave, “I'll stop soon and go back to studying again. I can control myself! And I mean it's not like I'm addicted or anything.” She focused herself back to the TV and resumed her game. “Besides, this is the first time I've ever heard you say something like that to me. Usually, you'd give me lecture if I screwed up once.”

As latched on as she was to her game, Yuzu knew that it hadn't taken over her life. After a couple weeks of Matsuri’s game console sitting in their apartment, Yuzu thought maybe she could put it to some good use and play something on it herself. While she absentmindedly shuffled through Matsuri’s various games that were sitting by their TV, Yuzu unexpectedly came across a Peach Sisters game, something the older girl hadn't touched in awhile after becoming busier with her college studies and with Mei.

It would've been considered nostalgic to play the rather…”non-family-friendly” game, but to Yuzu’s surprise, the case read a title she hadn't seen or heard of previously, Peach Sisters Plus: The Deluxe Edition. Nostalgia was completely out the window thd moment Yuzu’s eyes laid upon that title, leaving her with a crucial decision.

She had, no… _needed_  to play this game.

Things only went downhill from there, at least for Mei.

Out of sheer curiosity, Yuzu decided to try the game out and revisit these characters to see where they'd been. Her interest towards Peach Sisters eventually waned, seeing that she no longer needed its advice on how to go about her relationship with Mei. But on the first night she did try the game out, her interest sparked again when she found  _other_  ways on how to further her relationship with Mei.

Unlike when they were in high school, Yuzu typically hid away her laptop and manga, partaking in her interest with the fictional sisters in secret. But now, especially with their relationship bearing no secrets from one another, Yuzu didn't mind having to play the game so casually in her and Mei’s apartment living room. It also really helped that she and Mei had their own place now, throwing out the older girl’s fear of her mother walking in on her whenever a suggestive scene came up.

And there were plenty of those in this “Deluxe Edition” that certainly warranted its 18 and older rating.

There was one point where Yuzu frantically yanked out both the plug of the TV and game console the moment an extremely “intimate” scene appeared while Mei was casually drinking her coffee and reading a book on the couch. After extensive research, Yuzu knew when to anticipate certain scenes and when to immediately shut off the gaming device whenever Mei was home.

“Well, consider me lecturing you right now,” her girlfriend sternly told her. “Your focus lately has been nothing but on that ridiculous game. If you continue engrossing yourself in these video games, you could end up losing your academic momentum.”

“Mei!” Yuzu whined as her eyes remained glued to the TV. “Just relax. I've been pretty consistent with how long I spend time on this thing and I still keep up with my study schedule I set up for myself,” she pointed towards the direction of the fridge that had her color-coded study periods held up with a magnet. “I haven't lost track. Plus,” she glanced at the digital clock on the side of their television, “I should be studying again in about 10 minutes.”

Mei sighed, then quietly grumbled to herself upon hearing Yuzu’s explanation. It has been almost a three weeks since Yuzu started playing that game. And initially, Mei often hovered around her in order to make sure Yuzu wouldn't waste much of her time gaming instead of doing something more productive, like doing chores or studying. When Yuzu proved to remain on a consistent schedule: only 2 hours maximum playing games, Mei believed she could leave her be. While Mei was very impressed with Yuzu’s sense of discipline she established for herself, she felt that the games were monopolizing the older girl’s attention.

Yuzu was dating Mei, not a game. But that didn't stop the younger girl from seeing the Peach Sisters game as her competition.

“That’s not the point,” Mei mumbled. Seeing that Yuzu’s attention was still fixated on the Peach Sisters game, Mei crossed her arms disapprovingly and pursed her lips in a pout.

“Aw come on, Mei! Just because my back is turned doesn’t mean I don’t notice that face of yours.”

Face flushing, Mei’s eyes widened and darted her head to the side. It was true that Yuzu could read her like an open book at this stage of their relationship, but to read her facial expressions and mood without even looking at her...

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she casually said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Anyway, I just think you should take a break from this activity for at least a week.”

“A week?” Yuzu pouted. “But..but…” She wanted to continue, but didn’t want to admit she’d been using Peach Sisters as a guidebook again on how to go about their relationship.

“Is that a problem?”

“No,” Yuzu sighed in defeat. “Well, I don’t think that’s much of a problem anyway!” The blonde’s abrupt tone shift caused Mei to raise a brow. Turning around, Yuzu enthusiastically added, “I can just use that extra free time to do other things with you. I’ll be honest, but it gets kinda weird sometimes with you just watching me play this.” She released a nervous chuckle as she kept her eyes cautiously focused on the screen. Yuzu knew with where she was in this game, certain intimate scenes were about to pop up in the next few minutes. And with Mei right behind her, she couldn’t exactly continue sitting there taking notes as if she was she was in a college lecture hall.

Oh, how awkward that would be.

The younger girl’s interest piqued and smirked, “What _other things_ do you mean?”

“Oh, you know!” Yuzu’s voice raised a few octaves, trying not to think about her definition of _other things_. “Just the usual! Running errands, going to the grocery store, having fun dates together...just that stuff!”

With clammy hands gripping the controller, her eyes quickly darted back to the screen. But much to Yuzu’s horror, it was too late.

_Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!_

_Onee-chan, I want to…_

“Oh! Would you look at the time!” Yuzu announced loudly, hoping to avert Mei’s attention from the screen. “Guess, I gotta study now!”

Dropping the game controller, Yuzu’s body quickly moved to shut the console off. But much to her surprise, Mei gripped her shoulder to keep the older girl from moving.

“Mei? W-what are you doing?” she stammered. As the intimate Peach Sisters scene continued in the background, it only increased Yuzu’s heat and awkwardness in front of Mei. “I-I thought you told me to study soon?”

Her girlfriend’s response was only silence. Mei looked at Yuzu, then towards the TV, interested in the things that were going on.

Based on what was going on, Mei began to understand Yuzu’s fascination and obsession with this game.

Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to take a few mental notes as well.

Contrary to popular belief, Mei wasn't as sheltered as others believed. She knew of...those other things. But seeing it on screen, and in action, was definitely something else. In fact, while her face was burning up, there was something else burning up as well.

While Mei was distracted by what was happening on-screen, Yuzu decided to take that chance to frantically look for the TV remote. The sounds of moans and the pleads for more had her flushed, from her cheeks to the tips of her ears.

A thought briefly crossed her mind, "I wonder what Mei would sound like."

And just like that, in typical Yuzu fashion, at the thought of that, she nearly fell off the couch. Thankfully, Mei caught her in time and there! The remote was right in sight!

The blonde stretched out to grab her savior only to have her girlfriend pinning that hand down.

"M-Mei!" Yuzu stuttered, her face turning redder every second. Typically, she'd be relishing in having Mei on top, but not like this; not when it felt so...out of place. She was hoping to have things start off slow and then maybe some hands wandering and clothes off and _voila_!

The sheets would be dirty in a matter of moments.

But clearly, that wouldn't be the case.

"Didn't you say I should study?" She wiggled, trying to sound innocent as she tried to escape her girlfriend's grip. "A-After all, my schedule does clearly say I should be studying right now."

Her mouth moved to stutter more excuses only to shut cause of the intense glare Mei sent her way.

Leaning down, she whispered into Yuzu's ear, "How about this time, I study some anatomy?"

Tingles and shivers sent down Yuzu’s spine as the warm breath of Mei’s arousing words enveloped her ear.

Yuzu wasn't sure what she found hotter: Mei pinning her to the couch with certain background noises, or the whispering.

At the thought of that, she felt a small whine slip past her lips, her body tensing up. It was a small change, but with Mei's unwavering focus on her, that change didn't go unnoticed.

“Are you telling me…” she continued to whisper, a smirk heard within her voice, “You enjoy me like this?"

Another whimper could be heard, as if admitting that fact.

"Well, they do say payback is a dish best served cold. But in this case, I'd have to disagree." She mused to herself, "Best heat it up."

Yuzu was a mixture of flabbergasted and aroused. Flabbergasted at how much she rubbed off of Mei, and aroused at how much she rubbed off of Mei.

Her hips jerked a bit at that statement, although her face tried to look innocent, "Revenge? I have no idea what you're talking about." She tugged half-heartedly, not really wishing to escape her captor.

"Don't think I don't remember all those times you conveniently whispered to me during our special moments."

Her other hand wasn't being idle as she grabbed at Yuzu's dominant hand, a bit ironic since Yuzu wasn't exactly on top at the moment.

Or was she?

Power bottoms do exist but in this case, Mei highly doubt she'd be able to go through, with how much of a stuttering mess she is.

Mei tugged at Yuzu’s hand, guiding to where she needed the most. "You can start making it up to me by cooling me down.”

Was she dreaming? If she was, please, please don't pinch her awake. Her fingers twitched as they glided closer to their intended destination, Mei's all-knowing smirk still there.

Their eyes locked and wow, Yuzu didn't expect to internally melt into a puddle right then and there. The younger girl's eyes burned with passion, as if saying she has to have her right then and there.

And right when she was about to slip a finger in, the phone rang.

“Ah shit!” Yuzu jumped at the sound and immediately picked up her phone resting on the coffee table.

Reluctantly, Yuzu pulled away and Mei silently pouted. How convenient someone would be calling right when they were about to enter a rather intimate moment together.

“Yo, Yuzu,” the blonde heard over the phone. “I was wondering how my game console’s been doing at your’s and Mei-san’s place?”

Yuzu couldn’t see it directly, but she could feel Matsuri smirking through the phone.

What amazing timing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah I know I'm a tease ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
> 
> *cough* Ialsocan'twritesmut *cough*


	9. Don't Apologize

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuzu comes home and tries to cheery Mei up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ayyyy so I had this posted awhile ago but deleted it cause it felt unpolished on it's own so here it is again 
> 
> And it's still unedited lmao

There were many things Yuzu loved and admired about Mei. Her looks, her intelligence, her quirks and personality, her strength…

To Yuzu, Mei was the ideal. Someone to look up to. Despite her initial impression of the younger girl, Yuzu grew fond of the “little-miss goody two-shoes” and found herself wanting to be more like the stern student-council president.

While Yuzu didn’t always agree with the things Mei would put herself through, Mei had always been on top of everything. Balancing school life along with taking care of her grandfather’s school once nearly killed the young girl, and yet Mei was still willing to push through no matter how painful or difficult the job was.

When the two were entering college for the first time, Yuzu was ecstatic, practically leaping for joy knowing she and Mei would be living together despite going to separate universities. No longer would they be tied down to the looming fear of ever being separated again. No longer would Mei have to be shackled by the burdens of caring for her grandfather’s school by marrying someone she didn’t love. And most importantly, no longer did they have any more future problems to worry about concerning their relationship.

Or so they thought.

Yuzu always admired Mei, and knowing that her girlfriend had more freedom in college compared to when they were in high school, made her believe that Mei would flourish more than ever.

But after some time in university, Yuzu realized that wasn’t exactly the case.

“Yuzu?” a person tapped her from behind.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she rose her head from her desk to face her friend, realizing that she dozed off for a couple minutes in her class, “what were you saying?”

“We were just asking if you wanted to hang out after class today,” her friend said, “one of the guys got a really sweet deal at this mixer, so we could pretty much be there all night!”

Yuzu rubbed her eyes and just gave her friend a sad smile before looking down on her desk. She knew she couldn’t stay out long, nor did she want to at this time.

“Sorry guys, but I think I’ll pass,” Yuzu simply replied before taking her phone out to check for any messages.

Nothing.

Her friends around her just stared at the somber girl as she absentmindedly went through the various social media apps on her phone.

“Hey! Why not bring your girlfriend along!” one of them suggested, “it’ll be fun getting to know her more.” Yuzu appreciated the thought, but going to a place such as a mixer would’ve probably been a little too much for the younger girl.

“Nah, it’s okay. I don’t really think mixers are Mei’s thing,” she said while still focused on her phone.

“Oh, well okay then! But if she ever wants to hang out with us just let us know!”

Yuzu gave them another smile, gathered her things, and got up to leave for home. As she was on the train, she gazed out the window, thinking about exactly what to cook for Mei. Curry? Soup? Maybe even just a simple porridge bowl?

Did she even need to prepare something complex or fancy for the younger girl once she got home? It would be a miracle if Mei simply ate a bowl of rice tonight. Yuzu shook her head. Those thoughts didn’t matter. What mattered was getting the groceries, going home, and cooking dinner for them both.

* * *

“I’m home,” Yuzu announced as she closed the door behind her.

She looked around the apartment and sighed. Instead of hearing a vacuum or running faucet, the only sound in their apartment was the ticking clock in the background. Most of the windows were still covered with the blinds, concealing much of the apartment from enough sunlight. The dishes from earlier morning were still in the sink, and the trash was full of papers, cans, and other material Yuzu couldn’t really make out.

Dropping her groceries and belongings carefully on the floor, her first instinct was to check up on how Mei was doing. She approached the door to the their room and found the door slightly ajar. Mei was resting on their bed, fast asleep just as she had been a couple hours before Yuzu left for class.

“Mei?” Yuzu lightly knocked, hoping not to disturb the younger girl.

Rather than finding Mei at her desk finishing up some assignments, studying, or simply reading a book on their bed, Yuzu found her sleeping earlier than usual. Typically, Yuzu would view this as a normal thing. Mei would often stress the importance of having a regular sleep cycle especially during the times Yuzu would stay up studying for exams. But this had been the fourth day in a row Yuzu found Mei fast asleep before dinner.

A tinge of fear shot through Yuzu as she stared at Mei. The younger girl almost looked as if she hadn’t moved or gotten up at all. Approaching the sleeping girl, Yuzu subconsciously knelt down and placed her ear near the sleeping girl’s chest. Light breaths were the only sounds her ear could pick up, causing the older girl to breathe a sigh of relief. She pulled her head from Mei’s chest and was able to clearly see the faint rise and fall with every intake of breath.

Seeing that the younger girl was still breathing, Yuzu gave a warm smile, leaned in closer and placed a lingering kiss on the top of her head.

When she walked towards the living room, her eyes caught a glance of the shelf she would always find Mei dusting once she got home. When she stepped closer, she saw the duster crookedly set on the side while the rest of the shelf was still covered in dirt. Seeing the thing next to a half-finished dusting job oddly put Yuzu at ease.

Mei must have gotten up from bed for a bit while Yuzu was in class.

“At least she tried,” she chuckled lightly to herself.

Yuzu took the duster and cleaned the remaining dust from the shelf before heading to clean the dishes in the kitchen.

As soon as Yuzu finished preparing her and Mei’s meal, she took Mei’s plate and walked over to their room.

“Mei?” she approached the younger girl and placed the plate of food on the nightstand beside her. The younger girl still didn’t move a muscle. Yuzu sighed and placed a hand on shoulder, lightly squeezing it in an effort to wake her. “I made some food for you.” Still no response. Mei simply remained motionless, but breathing.

Hoping to wake her, Yuzu gave Mei another light squeeze on the shoulder.

The gesture caused the younger girl to groan a bit and shift in place. Yuzu’s eyes widened a bit and repeated her efforts in a careful manner.

“Hmm...Yuzu?” Mei groggily asked as she got up from bed, “what time is it?”

Her initial worries from earlier disappeared after suddenly seeing Mei rise from bed. As she expected, dark circles traced under the younger girl’s eyes. No matter how much sleep Mei was getting, it was as if it wasn’t enough. But compared to the past few days, just sitting up from bed was more than enough for Yuzu.

“It’s almost 7, sleepyhead,” Yuzu teased as she lightly ruffled Mei's hair. Now that she was awake, Yuzu began inching the plate of food towards her in an effort to try and get her to eat. “I wasn’t really sure what you wanted to eat for dinner, so I just made you steamed vegetables with rice,” she tucked a loose strand of golden hair behind her own ear before apprehensively adding, “I hope you like it.”

Instead of responding right away, Mei simply stared blankly at her plate of vegetables and rice placed beside her. A couple seconds passed and Yuzu began fidgeting with her fingers, hoping that Mei would at least take a bite from the prepared meal. She didn’t even have to finish half the plate, or a quarter, or an eighth. Yuzu was just hoping that for tonight, Mei would just eat something rather than remain glued and unmoving in bed.

Mei, please eat.

Another moment passed and Yuzu’s heart pounded with excitement the moment Mei’s hands slowly reached for the utensils set next to her food. The typical Mei from high school would have brushed off Yuzu’s gleaming reaction, possibly chiding her for getting so cheery about something so simple and mundane. But the younger girl couldn't help but mirror Yuzu’s smile of relief. To Yuzu, all that was going off in her head as her girlfriend directed her attention towards eating dinner was,

This is progress!

“Thank you, Yuzu,” she said softly as she lifted the plate towards herself.

Yuzu smiled, watching the younger girl take a spoonful of rice into her mouth. She chewed rather slowly, but Yuzu remained gleeful as she kept her focus on Mei eating for what seemed to be the first time in three days.

After only swallowing a spoon of food, Mei placed her plate back down on the nightstand and, without facing Yuzu, asked her, “why didn't you wake me before you started dinner? I could've helped…” she trailed off.

Oh no, Yuzu thought, she's making that face again.

The longer she was with Mei, the easier it became reading her underlying thoughts and feelings behind her expressions. She remembered seeing that face many times back during the first few months they met. The face that painted guilt, sorrow, anguish, and pain. After living away from the school, Mei’s grandfather, and their hometown overall, Yuzu was hoping a fresh new start in college would mean seeing that guilt-ridden face less and less. But in college, the older girl lost track of how many times she saw Mei’s painful expressions.

After the past three days making an effort to wake the younger girl, Yuzu eventually stopped and thought it would be best to let her rest. And with that face Mei was making, Yuzu probably thought the younger girl had given up on her.

“It's not that I didn't want you to help…” Yuzu began, then paused. She took a deep breath, trying to figure out how to word her answer towards Mei without sounding patronizing or possibly hurting the other girl’s feelings, “it's just...I’ve been coming home for the past few days, and every time I try to wake you up, it's always the same response from you.”

The school, her grandfather, and the duties of being student-council president still latched onto Mei. If only it was so easy to leave their past problems behind them. If only there was someway Yuzu could help her. If she had the power, she could just snap her fingers or whisk a wand to magic Mei’s problems away.

But the unfortunate reality was, it wasn't that easy.

“Oh…I see,” Mei blankly replied before turning her head down, “I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm so tired all the time.”

“I think you do, Mei,” Yuzu pointed out apprehensively. She didn't know if her words came out harsher than intended, but they needed to be said. At first, Yuzu didn't know why Mei became less functional the longer they were in college. With how used to the rigid structure Mei was conditioned under for almost her whole life, Yuzu believed her girlfriend could handle anything with her newfound freedom.

And that's when Yuzu finally realized.

Mei turned to face Yuzu. Instead of seeing a blank, lifeless gaze, there was confusion. Mei pondered for a brief moment until she sighed.

“You're right…” she softly admitted. “I'm...lost. I need the school, I need people to tell me what to do...I need the structure,” she ran her hands through her hair in frustration and brought her head to her knees, “I'm sorry, Yuzu. I...feel pathetic.”

“You're not pathetic,” Yuzu reassured as she softly ran her hands through her girlfriend’s hair. “I saw what you tried doing while I was gone,” referring to her unfinished dusting job.

Mei brought her head up from her knees and raised her brow at Yuzu.

“But I didn't finish,” she pointed out, “I was going to clean everything else, but I guess I just couldn't.”

“Hey…at least you tried,” she reassured.

“But was it good enough?” Mei averted her eyes from the older girl.

There was no response, no words spoken. Yuzu wanted to say it was good enough--no that it was more than enough. But she choked under her overwhelming love and devotion towards her girlfriend.

The longer the silence settled between them, Mei began to feel Yuzu was actually disappointed in the person she became versus the strict and high-functioning student-council president she once was back in high school.

“Mei...when I first found out you started skipping class, I got really confused,” Yuzu began, “then the apartment was a mess and I just thought you were sick for a day. But then it continued the next day...and the day after that…” she trailed off then lowered her head to face the floor. “Then when I saw you sleeping all day unable to clean or study or do your homework, it really freaked me out. You were never like this back then.”

Mei tightly gripped the bedsheets in front of her. She felt she was letting Yuzu down.

In a hasty attempt to lighten the mood, the older girl chuckled before continuing. “Usually you'd be scolding me for not studying or being lazy when I don't clean or sleep in on the weekends,” she then paused for a moment and brought her head up to look at Mei.

“I'm sorry,” Mei apologized again. It's as if those were the only words she could say to Yuzu. The only words she's said all her life.

Apologizing for making a mistake.

Apologizing for not living up to her grandfather’s wishes.

Apoligizing for every problem she couldn't solve right away as the student-council president.

Apologizing for abandoning Yuzu.

Apologizing for causing problems.

Apologizing for not being good enough.

But Yuzu just stared at her intensely, almost rejecting her apology.

“Mei, I know you're apologizing because you feel like you've disappointed me,” Yuzu said before lowering her voice to a whisper, “but do you know how all of this makes me feel?”

Mei didn't respond and averted her eyes away, afraid of what Yuzu had to say about her.

“I'm...scared,” Yuzu admitted, causing Mei to look back up at her.

“Scared?” Mei repeated in question.

“I keep seeing you asleep most of the time at home. And every time I'm at school, I freak out when that's all I remember...because,” her throat constricted, afraid of finishing what she was about to say, “I'm scared that one day I'll come home and you won't be breathing.”

The younger girl faltered. She felt weak every single time a bad memory plagued her mind. It began with a nap. She hoped that sleeping off her problems would make them go away and she’d return back to her normal self. But then another day passed, and another, and another…

With how she'd been for the past few days, she was surprised Yuzu hadn't given up on her yet. Before meeting Yuzu, every time Mei tried or needed to take a break, she'd often be scolded for slacking off on her duties.

“So yes, Mei. What I saw out there,” Yuzu pointed outside their bedroom, “and right here were more than enough. I know you're going through a lot right now, but you don't have to feel better right away! Even something as little as getting up from bed or eating just shows you're trying!”

Mei just sighed. “I'm sorry for making you worry, Yuzu. Is there any way I could make it up to you?”

Yuzu just stared at her, thinking of the many apologies she received from the younger girl within such a short amount of time.

“You said you're used to having people tell you what to do?” Yuzu said, “well, maybe you can do this for me.”

She brushed the bangs away from Mei's forehead and brought her chin up for the younger girl to look at her.

“I want you to stop apologizing,” Yuzu stressed, “and I want you to stop being so hard on yourself. I want you to start saying ‘thank you’ from now on. Be thankful that people are helping you. Be thankful that people are worried about you. You're not a burden to anyone, Mei,” she brought her forehead in contact with her’s, “especially not to me.”

Mei sat in silence for a moment, comprehending exactly what Yuzu meant. Saying “thank you”? Apologizing became second nature to her, but Yuzu was right. Perhaps she had been too hard on herself for too long.

“Okay…” Mei replied, “I'll try.”

Yuzu shook her head at her girlfriend’s response. “Not ‘try’. ‘Will’!” giving her a kiss on the forehead, “you're better than you think you are, Mei. I hope you'll remember that.”

Mei nodded and Yuzu smiled. The younger girl continued to finish her dinner and Yuzu decided maybe it would be best to eat with her.

Hopefully, her dinner didn't get too cold on the table.

Another thought came into Yuzu’s head as she got up to leave the room. She began fidgeting with her fingers again, wondering if there was any use in asking Mei. It was a weekend tomorrow and rather than have Mei continue to coop herself up in the dark apartment worrying about homework, she wanted her to try and relax, in a healthy manner at least.

Taking a deep breath, Yuzu turned around and asked, “hey, do you want to go to the park tomorrow with me?”

“Like a date?” Mei wanted to clarify.

“Not really,” Yuzu knew that if this really was a date, Mei would most likely be frantically trying to set things up for both of them to have a good time. And Yuzu didn't need to inflict any more pressure than what the younger girl was already currently dealing with. “Just a hang out, the two of us. I figured it beats staying indoors all the time.”

More silence settled between them, and Yuzu just stared at Mei internally trying to figure out what answer she wanted to give her.

After a couple seconds, Mei gave her answer. “Okay.”

“Okay?” Yuzu wanted to know if she was hearing that right.

“I'll go with you tomorrow. Besides, you're right,” she grimaced as she stretched her arms to relieve the tension, “I probably shouldn't be in bed so much.”

Yuzu laughed a bit as she saw Mei pout with every limb she attempted stretching.

“And Yuzu…” Mei spoke. “Thank you...for dinner and for caring about me.”

“You’ll get better, Mei,” Yuzu reassured before giving her a playful smirk, “and what kind of girlfriend would I be if I didn't care?”

Yuzu may have been wrong about how Mei would be like in college. She wasn't the same as she was back in high school and she may have been struggling a lot. But Yuzu didn't care.

If there was anything Yuzu was sure about, she would stay by Mei’s side no matter what.


	10. The Radiating Warmth of Aihara Yuzu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuzu finds a way to warm Mei up
> 
> BNHA AU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Old fic ayyy

The cold.

It was an all too familiar feeling Mei knew well.

She had just finished class and began getting her things ready before heading home. The weather forecast had predicted an unusual drop in temperature for the next few days and her mother reminded her to dress accordingly so she wouldn't catch a cold.

A simple leather jacket and a thin scarf were the only things the raven-haired girl needed to prepare herself. Any other person would've brought at least three more layers of wool as a barrier against the biting chill. But for Mei, she always had an unusually high tolerance to seemingly-freezing temperatures. At least, that's what she thought…

Before she even stepped out into the open air, a gush of wind nearly froze her skin solid.

“Snow? Well...that’s to be expected,” Mei remarked to herself as she noticed the falling snowflakes. There wasn’t much else to do. In retrospect, it probably would’ve been a good idea to listen to her mother and pack an extra jacket just in case. Unfortunately for her, everyone else at school had already gone home and she wasn’t going to call her mother to come pick her up. She wouldn't risk getting a lecture.

In her mind, she told herself that she’d experienced much colder temperatures than this. It would feel humiliating to herself to say she’s cold now.

Mei sighed to herself, knowing the possible consequences later, and began walking home. Not long after taking a few steps from the school she heard a voice call out to her.

“Mei!”

The raven-haired girl turned to find her blonde-haired step-sister running to catch up with her.

“What are you still doing here, Yuzu?” Mei asked, “I thought you went home with everyone else.”  
“I just needed to take care of some things with Harumin. I thought I’d end up walking home myself, but I’m glad I found you here. We can walk home together!” Yuzu radiated. She rarely ever got time to walk with Mei back home due to certain duties her sister had. On the other hand, Yuzu was sometimes held up at school, usually for causing unintentional trouble like accidentally blowing up the cafeteria, and Mei wasn’t always willing to wait around for her.

Mei simply let out a hum of approval and gestured the blonde to continue walking, to which Yuzu happily followed.

Another cold gush rushed in enough for Mei to stop in her tracks. She summoned all her willpower to keep herself from hugging herself. Of all the days she has to go home late, why did it have to be today?

Before she continued walking, she felt Yuzu pull back her shoulder and offer her jacket.

“Here. You’ll need this more than me,” the blonde offered as she held it up.

Mei just looked at her dumbfounded. Was Yuzu crazy for willingly wearing nothing but her school uniform?

“No, I shouldn’t-”

“C’mon, Mei. And don’t think I didn’t see you faintly shivering right when you were walking out,” the blonde interrupted while holding up her jacket closer to her sister.

“Besides, I can always generate my own heat,” Yuzu added.

Despite what the blonde said, Mei knew all too well that Yuzu still had difficulties in controlling her quirk. And even if she did have better control, she didn’t want to give Yuzu the impression that she could rely on her heat radiating quirk 24/7.

“I’ve experienced colder temperatures than this. I’ll be fine. You should put your jacket back on, Yuzu. You’ll freeze to death,” Mei pointed out.

Instead of obeying her suggestion, Yuzu playfully rolled her eyes, “That doesn’t matter. And just because you’re used to all the ice you make doesn’t make you immune a blizzard. That’s like if I were stranded in the middle of a desert.”

Mei didn’t say anything back and Yuzu simply looked at her with concern. If only the older girl didn’t run into her at school. The younger girl hated making the blonde worry.

“I said I’m…” but before Mei could finish, Yuzu’s eyes began to twinkle as she put her jacket back on.

“How about this?” she reached out her hand for Mei, only for the raven-haired girl to raise a brow.

“How is holding hands going to help?”

“There’s something new I’ve been trying out…and I think I’ve got it down” the blonde tried to keep herself from stumbling upon her words. One part of her head was probably mentally scolding herself for such a cheesy way of getting Mei to hold hands with her, while another part was applauding her for a possibly smooth move. But either way, the girl wasn’t lying about trying something new regarding her quirk.

“Just trust me,” Yuzu reassured as she briefly averted her eyes from staring.

The younger girl mentally sighed to herself as she stared at Yuzu’s offering hand. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, even her high cold tolerance she had built up over most of her life learning how to use her ice quirk couldn’t protect her from this weather.

It probably wouldn’t hurt to accept other people’s warmth every once in awhile, especially if it was Yuzu’s.

Without saying anything, Mei took the blonde’s hand, much to the latter’s surprise.

On the other hand, Yuzu’s face became red as a tomato from the sudden gesture. It was unexpected and overwhelming. She was expecting Mei to decline her offer again and instead just go back to persisting her about wearing her jacket. Warmth began emitting from her hand onto Mei’s and normally, anyone else would’ve melted into contentment from basking in heat after a long day in the snow, but in this situation that wasn’t the case.

“Ow!” Mei reflexively pulled her hand away from Yuzu’s and began covering her palm with her ice.

“I’m so sorry!” Yuzu quickly apologized as she received a brief glare from the other girl. She made no further gesture for physical contact, but took a look at her sister’s hand make sure she didn’t cause any significant damage. She felt the sting of pain just from looking at Mei’s expression, but luckily there were no visible burn marks she caused.

The blonde mentally scolded herself. After weeks of practice, she could’ve sworn she wouldn’t mistakenly generate more heat than needed. Apparently, she should've known a burning heart would lead to a burning hand. Expecting the younger girl to give another sharp glare at her, she braced herself, shut her eyes, and quickly prepared for another apology as the raven-haired girl turned to face her.

“I see you still need more practice controlling that troublesome quirk of yours,” Mei commented.

“Huh?” the blonde opened her eyes to look at her, dumbfounded. That was unexpected. Yuzu was technically being scolded by her younger sister, but there wasn’t any trace of disdain in her tone. Mei, of all people, would have probably angrily reprimanded her for the injury she caused.

“Look, I’m sorry if I hurt you or anything. That...wasn’t supposed to happen,” she apologized again.

“Obviously…” Mei muttered to herself while still treating her hand.

“Are you okay?” Yuzu asked still looking over.

The pain seemed to have subsided shortly after and Mei dispelled the ice covering the palm of her hand.

“Yes. My hand should be fine now. As for you, I’m beginning to wonder what kind of practicing you’ve been going through,” Mei noted.

“I swear I thought I had it!”defending herself. “It really would’ve helped, but I guess…” Yuzu’s voice grew softer with each word and looked down in defeat, “I guess everyone else was right.”

Mei looked at the dejected girl with concern. It wasn’t a surprise many of the students often carried whispers about her lack of control and cracked jokes about how she’d always burn or blow things up. Sleeping on the same bed with the girl sometimes felt uncomfortable since her lack of control often led to the bed feeling like a sauna. It was the worst during the summer and Mei remembered how she froze her side of the bed solid just to feel slightly at ease. However, she admired the girl’s efforts in maintaining control, despite how difficult it seemed.

Without a word, Mei reached out her other hand to Yuzu.

“What’s this?” Yuzu asked in confusion while staring at the now-offering hand.

“A hand. We’re still walking home together, right?” she pointed out. Despite the injury, it was still minor, and how would Yuzu learn anything if she didn’t at least try again?

“And...um…” Mei looked away to hide her embarrassment, “it is still pretty cold out. I thought it would be good for the both of us to stay as close as possible.”

“Yeah, but…”

“You didn’t burn this hand. Plus I’m giving you another chance to show me what new ability you say you’re trying out,” she continued still facing away from the blonde. Ironically, without the help of Yuzu’s quirk there was enough heat radiating from how much her face was burning. “Hurry up before I change my mind.”

Yuzu obeyed, but not before slightly hesitating. Mei was giving her another chance and the blonde was apprehensive she might burn her sister’s other hand.

Taking a deep breath, Yuzu relaxed herself before reaching for Mei’s hand. So far, despite feeling the same overwhelming build-up of energy when she first grabbed the younger girl’s hand, she managed to keep everything under control. Unconsciously reaching out for more warmth, Mei slowly intertwined her fingers with Yuzu’s.

Slowly, but surely, Mei felt herself warming up all over her body. She wasn’t sure what possessed her to clasp the blonde’s hand that way, but it didn’t feel as if she was latched onto a stove like earlier. Her hand might not have been burning, but Mei surely was.

“I wonder if it’s working,” the older girl pondered, causing Mei to look over.

“What?”

“Do you feel warm, Mei?” Yuzu asked.

“I...uh…” Mei had forgotten for moment about her sister’s radiating ability. Though, it was currently hard to tell whether or not she was warm from her own nervousness or from Yuzu’s quirk.

“Yes, I am,” the younger girl finally answered. Not a moment passed and the burning sensation settled into that of a calming fireplace that Mei’s skin melted upon. Quirk or no quirk, she found herself the warmest when she was with Yuzu.

The younger girl’s satisfying response was enough to plaster a grin on the elder girl and both motioned to start walking back home, hand in hand.

“By the way,” Mei suddenly remembered, “what were you doing after school with Harumi? I thought you two finished cleaning whatever mess you may have caused last week?”

“Well, to be honest, she was helping me get the hang of the new radiating ability I’m trying out on you right now,” Yuzu explained. Truth be told, it was the only ability she could actually practice getting the hang of around Harumin. The other girl’s quirk wouldn’t be of much help if it came to anything relating to combat, and plus, Yuzu never really asked Mei for help due to the possibility of disturbing the usually-busy girl.

“You actually seem to be more in control with your heat compared to before. Despite the...earlier burn, I’m impressed,” Mei genuinely complimented, causing the blonde to blush.  
“But,” there was always a catch to every genuine approval Mei gave out, “you still have a long way to go. I can help you. That is, if you want.”

Yuzu’s eyes widened at the offer, “Wow, really! I mean, I don’t want to get in the way of your busy schedule or anything.” As much as she was excited at the thought of spending more time with Mei, helping her no less, she didn’t want to cause any further trouble from the possible difficulties of managing her quirk. Harumin already barely escaped the possibility of turning into a puddle; she didn’t want to think about how someone with an ice quirk would work with her’s.

“I don’t know what Harumi has been teaching you, but I doubt her quirk is suitable for you to pick up anything more than controlling your own temperature,” Mei mentioned.

With that, Yuzu nervously took her offer with excitement. Mei set up a schedule where they would meet everyday after school, with the weekends being the most rigorous. Truth be told, Harumi did a decent job helping Yuzu out from further heating up any tables or chairs at school. Maybe there was something more in Mei’s offer? She admitted to herself she rarely spent time with the blonde due to her busy schedule at school, and hoped this new thing they were both trying out would lessen the impression she was shutting her older sister out.

It would be difficult, yes; probably beyond comprehension just to simply teach Yuzu, someone with a completely opposite ability than her own, how to use her quirk. However, based from today, maybe the girl didn’t always lose control of it like everyone says.


	11. The Wait

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In high school, it was often Yuzu who waited for Mei to return home. 
> 
> In which Mei deals with her waiting for Yuzu to come back home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all 
> 
> I've been using this collection lately to post a lot of my half-finished WiPs, so this chapter may or may not make much sense without context (also I'm on my phone and too lazy to type out the whole story lol so TL;DR this chapter is basically an extremely old draft of a chapter I had planned for the fic that ended up becoming Glass Memories). Mei and Yuzu are in college and deal with other things outside of just the stuff they went through in the manga.
> 
> Ay - and creds to ArcanicSoul for helping out with beta-ing this old draft of mine

In high school, it was often Yuzu who waited for Mei to return home.

But now, in college, rather than Yuzu at home waiting for Mei’s return from school, it was Mei waiting for Yuzu.

Unlike in high school, Mei wasn't as involved in anything at her college. She could have taken a position at her school as part of the student council, but Mei believed it to be unnecessary for her. Her reasons for even being the student council president at her high school were more out of obligation rather than of her own volition.

This was opposite to Yuzu.

The moment the blonde started college, she began joining numerous clubs left and right. Because of this, it always kept her busy and, to Mei's dismay, unable to spend enough time at their apartment to relax and be together.

Mei grew envious of Yuzu's newfound life at college. The younger girl could be out there participating in several different organizations, honor societies, just...anything to keep herself busy as she once was in high school.

But right now, all she could do was bury herself in her schoolwork as she waited for Yuzu to come home.

Mei looked over her work, attempting to check for accuracy once again for a fourth try. But the weight of her eyelids kept her from continuing. Sighing, she pushed away her work and sat up from her desk.

Stretching out her arms and twisting her torso, she tried to relieve the tension from hours of sitting and being hunched over. Her eyes caught a glimpse of her phone. On impulse, she picked it up and checked if she received any messages during her study session.

Nothing.

She turned back to her work again, wondering what else she could finish.

Working farther ahead in her classes wouldn’t be a bad idea...

Turning her head away from the desk, Mei grimaced. Why would she force herself to work again after so long? It had been about five straight hours she sat at her desk completing assignments, three of those hours were used to check over her work, more times than necessary, and work ahead in a few of her classes just to have a solid grasp on what to expect the next coming weeks.

Back then, it was so much easier for her to continue her work if she wanted to. But lately, even though Mei still maintained her solid work ethic, she slowly felt her sense of concentration slipping away, bit by bit. And a part of her didn’t want to admit why.

An odd tightness constricted down her esophagus as her eyes drifted back to her phone. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Mei checked her phone again for any possible messages that might have been received within those short passing minutes.

Still nothing.

Mei sighed in exasperation, then took a deep breath. Yuzu was probably busy at school again. While it was nice how the older girl was branching out and excelling far beyond how she performed in high school, Mei found her presence in their apartment decreasing as the term continued.

She looked out the window of her and Yuzu’s bedroom. It was almost pitch black outside aside from the city lights seen from the view of their room. The night sky looked beautiful, glittering with stars, but the sight only worried Mei even more.

What time was it?

A ring chimed from her phone, breaking Mei out of her hypnotic-like trance. She quickly grabbed it, hoping for a message from Yuzu.

When she opened the message, she simultaneously sighed with both relief and concern.

_From: Yuzu -_

_Sorry, I’m going to be out late tonight. Got caught up with homework and studying >.< you can eat the curry I made earlier this morning if you haven’t eaten yet. I’ll be home soon, I love you!_

Her eyes caught a glance at the top of the screen.

10:47 PM.

Mei felt guilty for feeling disappointed the blonde wasn’t going to be home early...again. This was about the fourth night in a row Yuzu would be out this late. And while the community around both of their respective universities was known to be relatively safe, Mei knew the dangers of having to walk out late at night around the city. She began typing in response to the blonde’s message.

_Don’t be out too late and make sure to be safe on your way home._

Once she sent it over, Mei walked over and set her phone on the nightstand beside their bed. She laid herself down on the sheets, first on her back, then to her side where she stared at Kumagorou, who was positioned at the center of the mattress. A low growl came from her stomach shortly after.

Maybe it would have been best if she ate something while she was in the middle of studying.

Unfortunately, exhaustion overtook her and barely had any energy left to get up from bed. Mei turned on her back to face the ceiling, hands folded on her stomach. Despite her weariness, sleep couldn’t come so easily to her. The only thing on Mei’s mind was where Yuzu was and what she could be doing this late at night.

Though, it shouldn’t be so much of a big deal. Back in high school, Yuzu often waited every night for Mei to come home from student council work. Oftentimes, due to the meeting the demands of the students, Mei wouldn’t come home until way past dinner.

And of course, here she was now, almost 11 ‘o clock, on their bed, waiting and wondering. The last time Mei ever stayed up like this for the blonde was when she worked that part-time job at the cafe in her hometown. Why was this such a big deal for her anyway? She’s dealt with Yuzu being out this late and away before. Why was this any different?

Trying to calm herself, Mei turned over to Kumagorou and held onto the big stuffed bear. Since Yuzu wasn’t here, hopefully this would quell her wandering thoughts. Curling up against Kumagorou, Mei could hear the faint sounds of the train passing through, coupled along with the ticking clock at her bedside. Those sounds only made her miss Yuzu more.

Sleep never approached throughout the night, not even by the slightest. Even after shutting off the lamp at her desk, Mei kept tossing and turning, trying to make herself comfortable, trying to adjust to a more pleasant position. But while Kumagorou provided a nice softness to ease into whenever she was feeling stressed or frustrated or simply just wanted something to hold onto, it could never match the enveloping warmth she felt whenever she hugged Yuzu.

Tired eyes were glued to the ceiling as faint ticking echoed throughout the room. Mei turned to her side again, facing the window and noticing how much darker it got outside. When her phone chimed again, Mei shot up from the bed and snatched it. Another message from Yuzu.

_From: Yuzu -_

_Mei! I’m so sorry! I don’t know what time I’ll be home tonight, I completely lost track of time and missed the last train, but I’ll figure something out!!_

The time read 11:48 PM.

Mei’s heart spiked the moment she saw.

She really regretted looking at the time. Had it really been two hours since she tried falling asleep? How long was Yuzu going to be out? Would she even be able to get home tonight? Mei tried to rationalize to herself that the blonde had once come home almost after midnight after working on a group project at her college. She then tried rationalizing to herself that Yuzu had exams coming up and had been studying like crazy for them. And she tried rationalizing that the community around both of them was a relatively safe area.

But rationality was barely present.

It was already difficult finding sleep; reading that message only reinforced an uncertainty within her. With a deep breath she calmly typed in response,

_Tell me once you’ve found a way home. Please be careful Yuzu._

She was about to press send, but read her message again. It was missing something. Something important. Tapping her fingers on the keyboard of her phone, Mei added one more thing to finalize her response.

_Tell me once you’ve found a way home. Please be careful Yuzu, I love you._

After reading over her message two or three more times, she felt satisfied and ready to send it over. But the moment immediately after she sent the message only made Mei feel worse.

There was an error message that her text didn't go through.

Confused at her phone’s response, Mei tried calling Yuzu’s cellphone, but the line couldn’t reach her for some reason. She took a deep breath and tried to rationalize the situation again.

Despite Yuzu being a little more “put-together” than she was in high school, she still managed to have those same irresponsible tendencies every now and then. Mei once remembered the other girl once came home frantically apologizing because her phone died for the fifth time that week and wasn’t able to call or leave a message. After all, Yuzu did tend to have a habit of messaging her so often, even when it wasn’t entirely necessary.

Yuzu’s phone probably ran out of battery, as Mei concluded.

She needed to reprimand the blonde again to bring her charger with her whenever she went out. With how often the Yuzu insisted on texting her even when unnecessary, Mei would’ve thought she learned to bring a charger with her by now.

Lying back down on the bed again, Mei tried to find some sleep once more. It’s not as if Yuzu hadn’t come home after nearly escaping trouble before. But even after attempting to calmly convince herself that Yuzu was fine, she still laid in bed with a million thoughts running through her head.

What if she’s out meeting with other people? What if she decides to sleep over at a friend’s place since it’s so late out right now? What if Yuzu gets hurt on her way home?

She could feel her hands lightly trembling and tried moving around her fingers, opening and closing her hands to rid the sensation. After a brief moment, Mei held onto Kumagorou again, easing her boiling anxiety by fidgeting her fingers against the stuffed bear’s paws.

It helped for a bit. But it still wasn’t enough.

During the first few weeks of the term, Yuzu felt dead set on living that college experience she always heard about from other people. She once dragged Mei along to one of the first parties held at the the blonde’s university and Mei immediately found it to be a waste of time. But despite her initial impression, Mei’s main reason for tagging along other parties was to keep Yuzu in check. In a way, she continued acting as the strict student-council president hovering over the troublesome blonde.

Yuzu wanted to continue living whatever romanticized experience she had in her head, leaving Mei worried that the blonde would revert back to her old high school ways and possibly get kicked out of college. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case in the end.

After a few weeks, Yuzu eventually stopped whatever she was doing and went back to focusing on her studies as she promised to both Mei and herself. Even when she was out going to mixers, college parties and many other social events, she still managed to keep that studious nature that she built up during her last year of high school. Mei didn’t know how Yuzu was able to keep herself together within that chaotic phase of her college life. Under all that worry, Mei was also left very impressed.

However, there was something else pestering Mei every time her mind remembered those first few weeks. On the day she allowed Yuzu to take her to one of those college parties she had heard about, she remembered her anger bubbling up when a couple of random, and probably much older, boys started flirting with the older girl. Yuzu played it off, saying that it was just harmless fun and reminded Mei she was there to have some fun with her. It stopped being a joke though when Yuzu saw more of those boys “flirting” with Mei.

Long story short, both of them almost got kicked out after Yuzu was blamed for causing a scene.

Mei took another deep breath to calm herself down. Yuzu was probably on her way home by now. If she was out at some party or social event, like the first few weeks, Yuzu would definitely have said something. Plus, Yuzu’s newfound maturity wouldn’t let herself be whisked away so easily at a last minute social gathering.

But the fact that the blonde’s phone was dead, especially at this time of the night, kept Mei paralyzed with fear.

Thinking back to that college party, what Mei found to be the worst part of that memory was how she simply stood by and let those things happen while Yuzu had to jump in save her from the situation...like always.

Mei remembered the frustration laced in those emerald eyes. She remembered Yuzu’s voice raising at their rude “host”. She remembered her shoving him away when he got a little too persistent in his pursuing. And she remembered Yuzu openly announcing to everyone at that party that she’s her girlfriend.

There were times Mei couldn’t help but wonder if Yuzu would’ve given those boys her complete, undivided attention had she not forgiven her. It would’ve been so easy to give in to their charms.

Maybe that was the reason she kept tagging along with Yuzu. Was it due to competition?

Despite how unruly, arrogant, and even annoying some guys were, Mei couldn't help but admit that there were some exceptions. And it was those exceptions that scared her the most. There were times when they came across kind and considerate ones during their short period of going to a couple college parties. The same ones that would have treated her way better and put way more effort than anything Mei could ever offer. If she never forgave Mei, Yuzu would have probably been dating someone more like Kyo at this point.

The younger girl shook her head, trying to rid herself from the lingering thoughts. Is this what the night atmosphere does to the mind? Based from Yuzu’s actions from that first party and the others that followed after, the blonde chose her and only her.

But you chose your duties first, didn’t you? A voice rung in her head.

Mei quickly got up from bed and sat at the edge, rubbing her temples in hopes of easing herself. Laying in bed while her thoughts kept wandering would get her nowhere near sleep. Against her better judgement, she picked up her phone again to check the time.

12:52 PM

“Oh my god,” Mei whispered in disbelief, “Where are you, Yuzu?”

Another memory came to Mei’s mind as she recalled their one of their earliest college memories. The last time Yuzu decided to go out, Harumi brought her home, completely drunk and disoriented. She was grateful that Harumi accompanied the blonde and managed to bring her home in one piece. Even though Yuzu said she got tired of that life, Mei still couldn’t help but worry that she could be in possible danger right now.

There was no way she’d be able to know for sure and sitting around wouldn’t solve anything.

Without hesitation, Mei stood up from their bed and headed towards the closet to start changing. She ruffled through her clothes, picking out anything remotely suitable. Appearances were the last thing she cared about. Pulling her coat over herself, Mei walked out of their room and towards the front door. She was about to reach for the handle until she heard it rattling.

“Oh crap!” Mei heard from the other side, “Why won’t this open?”

A wave of relief washed over Mei after hearing Yuzu’s disgruntled voice as she tried to open the door. The younger girl lightly chuckled and unlocked the knob to make Yuzu’s life a little easier.

When Mei opened the door, she was greeted with a look of shock and confusion from the older girl.

“Mei! I didn’t know you were still awake!” Yuzu’s astonishment switched to a more apprehensive one, as if expecting to be scolded by her girlfriend for being out this late. “I’m so sorry! My phone just died in the middle and I could’ve sworn I had enough power on my way home! I ended up getting a ride from a friend back here, but trying to contact him with nothing but a dead phone was so frustrating!” She quickly stepped in and shut the door behind her.

“A guy?” Mei raised a brow.

“Oh no! Don’t worry, Mei!” she countered as she waved her hands out in a frantic manner in front of her, “He’s just one of my classmates. I was actually studying with him earlier today.”

“I see…” Mei simply commented, then tried changing the subject, “Have you eaten already?”

“Yeah, I did actually,” she cheerfully said as she set her stuff along the floor and sat down to outstretch her arms on the couch. Mei followed and sat right beside her. She gave her a rather skeptical look, causing Yuzu to pout. “What? I swear I did! I’m taking care of myself like you told me to. I even ate a sandwich in the middle of studying!”

Mei gave her a smile and rested her head against Yuzu’s shoulder, cuddling up to her side. It didn’t take long for Yuzu to finally notice the other girl’s clothing.

“What’s with the getup? Were you planning on doing some last minute shopping at the grocery store?” Yuzu managed, stifling a yawn. “If so, I need some milk.”

The younger girl wrapped both of her arms around one of Yuzu’s, prompting the blonde to clasp her hands and thread her fingers with Mei’s.

“I was actually about to go look for you.”

Guilt spread across the older girl’s face. Her hands squeezed Mei’s and immediately went back to apologizing.

“I’m really sorry! I should've been more responsible…” she paused for a moment, “I hope I didn't worry you too much.”

Mei yawned and melted onto Yuzu’s shoulder. All the “what-if’s” that kept pestering her before seemed to have suddenly dissipated.

“No, it's okay. I should have known better that exams would keep you this busy,” Mei said. “But I would hope that you'll be more responsible the next time you're out,” she grumbled.

“Hey, why don't I make it up to you?” Yuzu perked up in her usual manner.

“Hmm?” Mei managed to voice under her drowsiness.

“After I'm finished, why don't I take you out on a nice date? It'll be fun!” her mind started playing out how their next date would go. “We could take a walk around the city, or visit that museum you wanted to see or...Oh! Maybe we can go to that new ramen shop! I don't know, whatever you want, my treat! Wouldn't that be great, Mei?”

But the other girl didn't answer. “Mei?”

When Yuzu turned her head, she found Mei already dozing off into slumber. The older girl smiled at the sight and tucked a strand of hair behind Mei’s ear and kissed her forehead.

Yuzu could’ve carried Mei to their bedroom, but seeing as how she was worn out from the long day, this was comfortable enough.

* * *

After the end of a long and hectic period of exams, Yuzu was starting to feel like herself again. She stopped receiving reprimands from Mei after almost ruining her health due to her workaholic nature over the past few weeks. Everyone told her how college was on a different level compared to high school. Some classmates of her’s often made snide remarks about how she wouldn’t even last a few weeks without getting kicked out, much less getting into college at all.

And yet, so far Yuzu had aced every single exam thrown at her and had been excelling in every class she was taking so far. Although Mei didn’t say it out loud, she was proud of her and couldn’t help but see parts of herself in the older girl. Whether those parts be good or bad was too early to tell.

The stress of college unfortunately kept both of them unable to spend enough quality time together despite living under the same roof. But now that things finally winded down, Yuzu wanted to make things up to her girlfriend. It had been awhile since they went on an actual date, and Yuzu wanted to go all out. That is, just her and Mei spending the whole day together. No distractions, no assignments to worry about, and no other people who could possibly bother them on their date.

Though, after Yuzu enthusiastically shared the news about her grades to Mei, her plans of making things up to her took a different direction.

“What? But I wanted to do something special for the both of us!” Yuzu whined.

“It’s only fair. Besides, I believe you deserve a reward for excelling in your studies,” Mei acknowledged.

“But I just feel like you deserve this, especially since school’s been keeping my attention away from you lately,” she looked at Mei with those pleading, puppy-dog eyes, “Please?”

She’s too good for you, Mei thought as she stared at that pleading face. Typically, Mei would crumble under Yuzu’s persistent persuasion, with her groaning in defeat and Yuzu beaming in victory. But as she stared at Yuzu’s insistentence in wanting to lead their date, Mei only felt frustration towards herself boil. Even after weeks of exhaustion in college, leading her date with Mei was seen as Yuzu’s reward. Not that Mei didn’t appreciate the older girl’s efforts, but Yuzu was already doing everything for her. It couldn’t hurt to maybe switch up the roles a bit.

“I thought maybe I could help you de-stress after a long two weeks.”

“But-”

“You did say ‘whatever I want’, didn’t you?” Mei interjected. “And I want to lead our date.”

“So, you did hear that last part...” Yuzu mumbled. She sighed in defeat then gave Mei a soft smile, “all right then. Whatever you want.”


	12. The Sun Still Burns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also an old fic that I'm storing here cause I felt it wasn't good as a standalone fic 👀
> 
> I think I've posted this on AO3 about 3 times now lol

When she first began sleeping beside Yuzu, Mei wondered how she would ever deal with the uncomfortable heat enveloping her.

But then winter came, and slowly but surely she welcomed Yuzu’s warmth. And after the next couple of months bonding with the other girl, Mei gradually forgot what it felt like being alone. After denying Yuzu several times, pushing her away, telling her she would never accept her, Mei began finding herself inching closer and closer next to the older girl almost every night.

Eventually, whenever Mei woke up, she would always expect Yuzu sleeping soundly right beside her.

Then she left. Out of pride or her self-sacrificial nature to guarantee Yuzu a better life, Mei reluctantly left Yuzu behind to fulfill the family duties she was shackled to.

Why did she ever consider choosing an empty and hollow love versus a warm and fulfilling one?

The first night without Yuzu was unbearable. Mei could barely sleep on her own bed without having images of the older girl’s peaceful, snoring and drooling face flash in her mind. It was the face she longed to see again during those cold and lonely nights. Sometimes, Mei wondered if Yuzu still longed for her the same way, but she always kept shaking those thoughts out of her head. Mei kept telling herself she had an obligation to fulfill, and Yuzu shouldn’t have to be dragged down an unhappy life with her.

Yuzu deserved a better life. She deserved better than this. Yuzu deserved better than her. After all, Yuzu had the courage to be free while she, herself was nothing but a coward. In time, Yuzu would eventually forget about the younger girl, find someone who would treat her right, and give her the happiness she always deserved. It was something that Mei kept repeating to convince herself that what she was doing was right.

And why wouldn’t Yuzu deserve better than her? All the memories that came into Mei’s mind were always the bad ones--how she stole kisses from her, how she pushed her away so many times, how she remained cold and distant from her…

Even after warming up to Yuzu and slowly changing to a better version of herself, it didn’t stop Mei from running away from her true feelings. It didn’t stop her from keeping secrets from her. And it certainly didn’t stop her from running away from the one person she desired the most.

But even after every futile attempt to convince herself that what she was doing was for the best, Mei couldn’t help but picture Yuzu’s crying face in front of her. She couldn’t bear to be upfront and face Yuzu’s pain. Yet even after leaving a note explaining how much the older girl meant to her but couldn’t be with her, how Yuzu’s plan to “fall in love with Mei and live happily ever” unfortunately failed, Yuzu’s sobbing face was still fresh in Mei’s mind despite not seeing it. Every time those images flashed in her mind, Mei felt nothing but crushing guilt for tearing a hole through Yuzu’s and her own heart.

Staring at the ceiling of her room in her grandfather’s house, Mei reminisced over all the moments, big and small, that she shared with Yuzu.

Yuzu gave everything to her. Out of everyone else in Mei’s life, Yuzu always stuck by her side no matter how ugly or complicated or messy things got. She was the only one Mei truly felt ever understood her. And how did she repay her? By running away due to her own selfishness and cowardice. No matter how many times Yuzu simply saw her as a young girl, Mei couldn’t see herself the same way Yuzu did. Every time she looked at her own reflection even during her days living with Yuzu and her mother, Mei never saw a girl in the mirror, only a tool used to further the Aihara legacy.

It was this perception of herself that made her realize that maybe Yuzu did deserve better.

And yet, Yuzu still longed for her. Mei didn’t know what went on in the blonde’s head to continue chasing after her. She wasn’t supposed to be a part of Yuzu’s life, but deep down Mei knew she couldn’t live without her.

After constant apologies, rebuilding trust, overall repairing their broken relationship, and coming out to their friends and family, Mei and Yuzu actually believed their lives would continue for the better.

Or at least, Yuzu did.

Mei wanted to believe her life with Yuzu meant her past problems were over and done with. And for the most part, they were. When they both started college, her days living with Yuzu, away from their hometown and in a new city, were nothing but the best days of her life. And yet, there were still nights where Mei would wake up shaking, frantically feeling the other side of the bed to make sure Yuzu was still there. Whenever the older girl was woken up by Mei’s mild burst of panic, Mei would often apologize quietly, then attempt to dispel Yuzu’s worries by telling her everything is fine.

And it should’ve been fine. Everything should’ve been okay now that they resolved the loose ends in their relationship. Mei thought that living in a new city and attending university with her girlfriend freed her from her messy past. Yuzu’s plan to “live happily ever after” should’ve worked.

But it didn’t.

The fact that it didn’t was the most frustrating thing Mei couldn’t comprehend. Despite not seeing herself as much of a tool to continue the Aihara family, the younger girl still couldn’t see a person in the mirror. Throughout the past two years in college, Mei had always seen Yuzu thriving, excelling, and doing a lot more compared to her days in high school. But at the same time, while Yuzu was flourishing, Mei was wilting.

As the months passed, Mei slowly began to lose sight of herself. The past she once thought she broke free from kept haunting her with every passing day. And each time this happened, it stunted Mei from moving forward. Her father’s abandonment, her burdens with taking over the school, her arranged marriage with Udagawa, and her fear of losing Yuzu again always kept Mei from getting any semblance of sleep during most nights.

Why did she feel like this? Yuzu obviously moved on from the problems that transpired between them. Meanwhile, Mei would never understand why she was still shackled by her past.

Because of how happy Yuzu felt around Mei, Mei wanted to maintain the illusion that nothing was wrong. She didn’t want Yuzu to think her plan failed and that she could never make her happy. Yuzu always made her happy. But for some reason, there were days she just couldn’t feel happy. Instead, it would be replaced by an empty and unfamiliar hollowness in her heart. Other days it would be filled with a suffocating adrenaline rush during some moments when Yuzu wasn’t by her side.

Unfortunately, maintaining that illusion could only last for so long. Mei wanted to protect both her own and especially, Yuzu’s happiness by keeping any reminders of the past as far away from them as possible. But the longer Mei suppressed her doubts, fears, and insecurities, the longer the pain lasted.

As a result, Mei began falling apart in school. Her grades slipped, she failed many of her exams and her perception of herself only worsened. Now, whenever she looked at herself in the mirror she saw nothing. That high-functioning honor student and student-council president was simply a shadow of her former self.

“What does Yuzu even see in me?” Mei contemplated as she continued staring at herself in the mirror.

The moment her eyes caught a glimpse of her ring, Mei sighed then exited the bathroom of their apartment and into her and Yuzu’s room. She crawled under the sheets while Yuzu lazily snuggled up close to her. Warmth enveloped her, and every time Yuzu cuddled up beside her like this, Mei felt as if she was experiencing comfort, security, and love for the first time.

There was always a reignited sense of security she felt whenever Yuzu held onto her. It made her forget all of her past worries and problems and actually focus on the present for once. But even that could only last for so long as well.

“Why did I ever believe giving you up was the right thing?” Mei whispered to herself as she stared at Yuzu.

In the dark of their room, Mei laid on her side quietly admiring Yuzu’s sleeping face. She lightly caressed her cheek, soft enough so as to not wake her and Yuzu smiled from the featherlight touch. Admiration turned to somber, and Mei turned with her back facing Yuzu, in an attempt to get some sleep that night.

One second passed, and then a minute, then an hour.

Sleep never approached and memories of what could’ve been continued to haunt Mei. During her days living away from Yuzu, she always had dreams of waking up right beside Yuzu and spending the rest of their morning resting in each other’s arms. But as soon as she woke up, seeing nothing but a cold, empty side of the bed she realized this was the nightmare she chose, and the nightmare she was forced to live with for the rest of her life.

Shaking off that thought, Mei turned back to face Yuzu again. If this was a dream, then she never wanted to wake up. She couldn’t bear to live through that nightmare again. She couldn’t bear waking up to a cold bed, or even worse, waking up in a loveless marriage with Udagawa.

Tears began welling up in the younger girl’s face and she quickly, but carefully, turned away from Yuzu. A whimper escaped her throat and she tried muffling it with her hand. It was another one of those nights again. Mei understood this pain all too well.

In her childhood, she remembered the nights how she would quietly cry herself to sleep in an empty house wondering when her father would come home. She remembered how numb and hollow she felt the moment she realized her mother never wanted her. And she remembered wiping away her tears, the moment before needing to sort out business matters with her grandfather. Back then, it was simply her way of maintaining the facade of being the perfect granddaughter, immune from any minor, emotional problems that may come her way. But looking back, Mei secretly hoped her grandfather would notice her tired, red eyes, ask her what’s wrong, and maybe even comfort her.

He never did.

And after those few years, feeling nothing but a void in her heart, Mei built high walls around herself and made herself believe she didn’t need or deserve love.

Now, she was in cozy apartment, sleeping next to the person she loves the most.

Yet, even after sleeping soundly next to the one she loves, Mei still wept every night. And the fact she did only made her feel worse.

Why was she even sad? She was no longer alone and was finally able to be with the girl who made her feel like everything. Her sadness didn’t make sense and the more she tried to comprehend it, the more painful it felt. More tears flowed down and her light whimpers turned into choking sobs. Afraid of waking Yuzu up, Mei buried her face in her pillow, pressing hard while her hand tightly clenched on the fabric. She hoped the pillow would swallow her pained sobs, but even when she could quietly let everything out on it, Yuzu was still next to her; and Mei feared even the slightest sound would wake her.

It was almost as if her body involuntary wanted to bottle up all that pain. With the growing tension, Mei curled up in a ball on her side of the bed and trembled. She couldn’t let Yuzu see her like this. This was supposed to be their “happily ever after”. Mei was supposed to be happy, and yet she felt like she was ruining everything for the both of them.

“Mei?” she heard from behind.

Mei mentally scolded herself for not being quiet enough.

Playing it off as if nothing was wrong, as usual, the younger girl didn’t respond and pretended she already drifted off to sleep.

“Mei...I know you’re awake,” Yuzu placed a hand on her shoulder, “I was actually awake the whole time,” she confessed.

Still unresponsive. Mei couldn’t get herself to face Yuzu while tears still flowed down her cheeks. Remaining glued to the pillow, Mei hoped the other girl would get tired of waiting and go back to bed. A brief moment passed and right when Mei thought Yuzu was heading back to sleep, she felt Yuzu’s hand on her shoulder begin rubbing her back.

“I know you probably don’t want to talk about it now, but you know I’m always here if you need anything,” Yuzu reassured. And with that, Mei’s tension dissipated for moment and loosened her her grip on her pillow. The younger girl felt like she could breathe again. Wiping the remainder of the tears on her face, she subconsciously turned to face Yuzu, who circled her arms around the younger girl.

Mei wrapped her arms around Yuzu’s back and held onto her tightly, as if afraid she would disappear if she let go. She thought her crying stopped the moment her tension melted away, but all of a sudden, her pain crept back to her.

Soft whimpers bubbled up in her throat quickly turned to choking sobs. But this time, Mei didn’t hold back.

“Yuzu…” she croaked as she gripped harder on the older girl’s back.

Each sob she heard only tightened Yuzu’s grip on the other girl. She placed her hand on the younger girl’s head, soothingly stroking her hair in an effort to calm her down.

“Yuzu, I…” Mei managed through her whimpers. They were working on strengthening their communication in their relationship, but trying to talk about what was on her mind was nothing but a futile effort. Every word she tried to speak only came out as a croak or cry.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to say anything right now,” Yuzu softly reminded. “I don’t know what’s going on with you right now, but if you need to cry, then let it out. I’ll be right here.”

Those last few words echoed in Mei’s head. She had heard them before through countless dreams while she lived away from her family. Because of her fear that this too was just another dream, the promises of Yuzu staying by her side eventually rung empty. They were supposed to comfort her, but it only made Mei cry harder.

Yuzu kept murmuring reassuring words and promises in her ear, and eventually the two drifted off to sleep.

* * *

The next morning, Mei woke up to the glimpses of light shining through the window.

Another day to get through. She had honestly lost time and forgotten what happened the night before. But based on her dried tears and heavy eyelids, Mei spent another night crying herself to sleep.

A weight and warmth registered through to her and realized she wasn’t alone on the bed. Her heart rate sped up. Was she in another nightmare? Did she actually end up marrying Udagawa?

Weakly, but hesitantly opening her eyes, Mei saw green fabric in front of her and sensed warm arms on her back and head. Memories of the night before finally came through to her and Mei breathed a sigh of relief, glad that she wasn’t living another nightmare. Her face was buried in Yuzu’s chest while the older girl did everything she could to comfort her.

Careful not to wake Yuzu, Mei got up to check the time on the nightstand.

6:54 AM

It was still early and it didn’t hurt to rest a little longer. Before she settled back down on the bed, she caught a glimpse of Yuzu’s face. Mei leaned in closer and found dried tears on the other girl’s cheeks.

Yuzu was crying too.

The sight would’ve pained Mei, but oddly enough, it put her at ease. It reminded her that Yuzu was actually there with her that night. She always feared that her time with Yuzu was nothing but a dream, an illusion. Every time she woke up in that empty house she stayed in, Yuzu was nothing but a distant memory.

But this time, she wasn’t.

Despite the relief Mei felt after pouring out all her emotions to Yuzu, she knew her past plague wouldn’t disappear overnight and that those nightmares would haunt her again. She couldn’t keep her problems locked away forever, and no matter how painful it would be to remember the past, one step to possibly resolving her recurring pain was to tell Yuzu.

But right now sleep was probably a good option. There was no rush to tell her everything. After all, unlike before, Mei knew she would stay with Yuzu forever.


	13. Restore the Frayed String Part I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now engaged, and with the support of all their friends and family, Yuzu and Mei feel they're in a better place in their relationship. With the secret out, and more free than before, the newly-engaged couple believe there are no more problems that would come their way. But after receiving a dinner invitation in the mail meant for congratulating the newly-engaged couple, Yuzu realizes that acceptance comes both ways.

Silence.

Especially during business dinners with her potential suitors, Mei was usually used to the stilted silence that would fall between her and her potential husband. 

But now that she and Yuzu were engaged to be married, Mei was glad those business dinners with all the men who carried nothing but empty promises finally came to an end. Memories of some men who stuttered and men who boasted often came to mind. All tried to make themselves look different, try to elevate themselves in such a manner hoping to claim her as some sort of prize. 

Every business meeting with some suitor always turned out to be the same. They would be talking, while Mei would just sit in silence, drowning in their empty words. 

Thank goodness those days were over.

Regardless, Mei sighed with relief now that she no longer would have to deal with sitting in front of a man she had little to no interest in. Now that she had Yuzu, someone Mei took great interest in, she believed that those previous awkward social situations were no longer something she would run into. 

At least until now. 

“I know it seems like the invitation came out of nowhere, but it wouldn’t hurt to go and meet this person,” Yuzu suggested. 

Mei sighed as she stared at the invitation in hand. It was a special reservation set up by the manager of some high class restaurant that Udagawa had some affiliation to. Apparently, he knew of the manager there and trained under them until he was ready to open up his own cafe and start a business from there. 

If this were some reservation set up by her grandfather or father congratulating her and Yuzu’s engagement, then maybe she would be okay with accepting the invitation. But after seeing the name of the restaurant manager, Mei wanted to back out. Her mind told her to rip up the invitation, throw it out, and pretend she and Yuzu never saw it. But her body stood stagnant, unable to figure out what to say or do in that moment. 

“Besides,” Yuzu continued, “If you really didn’t want us to go, wouldn’t you have said something earlier?”

Mei opened her mouth, then immediately closed it, agreeing with her fiance’s words. If she really didn’t want them to go, wouldn’t she have thrown out the invitation the moment she saw the name? 

It had already been three days since they received the invitation from Udagawa--three days plenty for Mei to process and decide what she wanted. 

Mei sighed as she took a look at the invitation again. Her fingers gripped onto the paper tightly as she read the name across the invitation. 

Yuzu stared back at her, feeling that familiar atmosphere settle between them. It was the same feeling she remembered when Mei often pulled away from reading her father’s letters. 

Placing a hand over Mei’s, Yuzu reassured softly, “Hey, you know you won’t be going alone, right? After all,” she pointed at the inscription on the invitation as a reminder, “it says ‘Aihara Mei *and* Aihara Yuzu’ are invited. I don’t see just your name on it.” She let out a quiet snort of amusement before recomposing herself. 

“I’m not sure about this,” Mei quietly said. “And we already have enough support from our friends and family, including people I didn’t expect,” having her grandfather in mind. 

“Yeah, but…it doesn’t hurt to have more support. Whether it’s from our friends and family,” Yuzu held Mei’s hands in place, intertwining their fingers together, “or even from complete strangers... is having more support from more people a bad thing?” 

With their fingers laced together, Mei thought carefully about Yuzu’s words and found herself wanting to go through with the invitation. 

Mei tried to rationalize that there must have been a good reason for *her* to reach out again, even if she could have had the chance long ago. But even if she was calling her and Yuzu just to waste their time, it wouldn’t matter. They still have everyone else’s support to lean onto. 

Setting the invitation down on the table, Mei looked at Yuzu and nodded, almost apprehensively. 

“You want to go?” Yuzu asked, attempting to hide the excitement in her voice.

Mei nodded again, but more confidently, hoping to convince herself this was her answer. She was just hoping she wouldn’t regret her decision. 

“We’ll go, but,” Mei sternly asserted, “we won’t say much about us unless she asks us. I don’t want you getting caught up in your excitement in talking about us to my...mo-” she stopped herself from finishing, feeling that it was undeserved for her to call that woman--the woman who left her and her father without a word or trace--her mother. She felt her shoulders relax as she looked at her and Yuzu’s laced fingers again. Placing a kiss on Yuzu’s fingers to give her strength, Mei continued, “The point is, I don’t want you feeling like you’ve wasted your time if she ends up trying to tear down our relationship.”

“Mei…” Yuzu tried to offer more reassuring words, hoping to offer words of support. But nothing else came to mind. There wasn’t anything else she could offer that would completely reassure Mei that her mother would actually accept their relationship. And Yuzu couldn’t exactly speak for Mei’s mother since...she never knew her.

Maybe the invitation had some other agenda behind it instead of Mei’s mother congratulating them on their engagement.

“Well...the invitation is a start!” Yuzu optimistically said.

“First,” Mei began, “We’ll need to figure out what to wear.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this used to be it's own fanfic, but I didn't know if I was actually going to finish it, and I have way too many other fics I need to get to lol, so this one isn't really a priority. Nor do I know if I'll ever see myself working on this in awhile. 
> 
> Plus, I already have another piece of work where I have Mei's mother as a plot point.


	14. Lingering Demon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mei has to deal with demons of the past that she never realized would follow her during her college years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Old old old 
> 
> I wrote this back in March but I never really edited much of it (and it's honestly all over thr place) but felt like posting it here since I'm never gonna use it lol

The date was supposed to go well.

It wasn’t a bad one, and could’ve been worse, but throughout the whole thing, Yuzu had to wave her hands in front of Mei to snap her out of whatever daze she was in. Oftentimes, Yuzu had to initiate the occasional affectionate touches and kisses they normally would do whenever they were in an intimate setting. The older girl didn’t complain, especially since she was more than happy to give, but Mei was barely reciprocating throughout their whole date.

This continued for the first hour.

“I’m sorry,” Mei quickly apologized. She mentally scolded herself for taking her attention away from Yuzu for the tenth time since they began their date.

The first three apologies were after Yuzu tried to pry Mei’s eyes off the notebook she was glued to; the next three were for the times Mei realized she was supposed to initiate a kiss or hand-hold, while the next four were for each time the younger girl was distracted by something.

“Mei, are you feeling okay?” Yuzu placed her hand on the other girl’s forehead to check if she was possibly getting a fever, “We don’t have to continue our date. We could just go home-”

“No!” Mei cut in, “I’m fine, really. I guess I’ve just been a little stressed lately,” she regretted how those words came out of her mouth, especially after noticing how worried the other girl looked. Mei took in a breath to recollect herself.

In truth, Mei hadn’t been feeling well lately despite managing herself in her studies. She didn’t want to bother her girlfriend with her own personal problems since she knew Yuzu would drop everything for her. And after seeing how well she was doing, Mei didn’t want to impede on that.

She was hoping this date would make her forget about all her troubles, but unfortunately, with the way things were going, nothing was working.

“Then we probably should just go home,” Yuzu insisted, “We can go another time, really Mei! I don’t mind. You don’t have to force yourself to be out here.”

“But I’m not forcing myself,” Mei defended, “I want to be out here with you.”

“You can be with me inside our apartment. We could just watch movies or cook or just sit on our couch do nothing all day,” the older girl suggested. “I know you said you want to lead our date, but you don’t look so well. You don’t have to try so hard for me, Mei.”

Yuzu’s tone was soft, genuine, and reassuring. But those last words rung mockingly in Mei’s head, causing her to wince slightly. Why wouldn’t she try so hard for Yuzu? After everything she put the older girl through, the least Mei could do was put 100 percent of her effort.

“Yes, I do,” Mei murmured as she placed her hand over her forehead in distress. She didn’t know where it came from, but an unfamiliar ache began spreading throughout her skull. Yuzu quickly noticed this and only increased her worry tenfold.

 _Why am I like this?_ Mei thought.

Their date was supposed to be perfect, as Mei wanted it to, yet here she was, possibly ruining it. She tried to brush off whatever pain was creeping up on her and continued walking forward. But she began to stagger with each step.

“Hey, hey!” Yuzu quickly hooked an arm around Mei’s shoulder to keep her from possibly collapsing. Her eyes caught sight of a nearby bench and began guiding Mei over. She settled Mei and herself down before a brief silence followed.

After the pain subsided, Mei spoke up. “Sorry…”

“No, no, no! Don’t apologize, it wasn’t your fault!” Yuzu fretted. Another silence followed.

“It’s been awhile since we’ve been on a date together, and I just wanted you to have a good time,” Mei admitted.

“But I already have a good time when I’m with you. I know it’s been awhile, but don’t beat yourself up about it! There’s always next time. It’s not like we have a time limit or anything,” Yuzu let out a small laugh while Mei only tensed up from what she said.

Not that memory again.

After her laughter died down, Yuzu noticed the younger girl’s tension remain. She was hoping to lighten the mood but seemed as if she made Mei feel a little worse.

“Are you sure you're just a ‘little’ stressed?” Yuzu asked.

Subconsciously, Mei grabbed ahold of Yuzu’s arm and sunk against her shoulder. For some reason, all her worries and whatever was bothering her seemed to melt away. It would’ve been convenient if those problems dissipated before the start of their date.

“It’s just stress with school. You don't need to worry too much about it,” the younger girl replied. Aside from running into that heart-aching note last night, there was something else troubling Mei’s mind. And while she and Yuzu agreed to keep that window of communication always open, she still felt hesitant talking about something that might seem trivial.

“But I should be worried! I'm your girlfriend. Didn’t you tell me weeks ago I shouldn’t overdo it when I’m studying?” Yuzu added, assuming that her girlfriend was dealing with academic stress. She took one look at her girlfriend again and noticed how exhausted her eyes looked, “and I could be wrong, but this looks more than just school stress.”

“I’m fine.”

“Mei,” she was using that tone again. The one that indicated Yuzu knew more than she was letting on, “You seem really distracted. You’ve been spacing out a lot since we went out today and you wouldn’t even kiss me or my hold my hand unless I said something.” Putting a hand on Mei’s knee, Yuzu softly asked, “Just talk to me. What's wrong?”

Mei took a deep breath and thought back to a month ago when he showed up.

“Well…”

* * *

**One month ago**

Quiet whispers echoed throughout the lecture hall as Mei sat quietly waiting for her professor to arrive.

She had no idea what they were whispering on about and listened intently from her seat. The professor wasn’t here yet, so she may as well find some entertainment with her time. Mei thought the other students were probably going on about the exam they just took, and based on the frantic shushes, were discussing some of the possible answers.

“Oh my gosh, I know! I heard he’s super hot!” Mei managed to hear.

It was more gossip, and suddenly she lost interest. For the past couple of weeks, she had to endure the ear-grating giggling from the girls that sat behind her every lecture.

Every week it was the same nonsense. They talked about the latest parties, going to mixers, and which guy they would probably date from whichever class. It was juvenile and Mei wanted to groan out loud. Why were they even here if they didn’t bother listening to the lessons? Hearing the way they talked slightly reminded her of how Yuzu was in high school. She was only glad that Yuzu didn’t completely turn out like them.

“And he’s replacing that boring Oshiro-sensei.”

Now that was confusing. Mei focused her hearing back to the girls behind her again. It was probably more nonsense gossip, but the rumors couldn’t help but pique her interest.

Suddenly, the echoing conversations died down in the lecture hall as an unfamiliar man came in with a briefcase. Mei raised a brow wondering exactly where the professor could be. Once he set his briefcase down, he turned to look everyone in the room and Mei’s eyes widened the moment she caught a glimpse off his face.

“Hello everyone! Your professor, Oshiro-sensei, unfortunately needed to take some leave due to health complications, and has personally asked me to take over,” he announced, “So, I’ll be your instructor for the rest of the term. You may call me Himemiya-sensei.” He flashed a grin after he finished introducing himself.

While the girls behind her silently fawned over how attractive he looked, Mei wanted to throw up. That brown hair, that stature, that seemingly-friendly smile, and just the way some of the other girls in her class gawked at him--it was all too familiar. He looked just like him.

The only thing different was his name.

And for the rest of the term since that day, Mei waited for him to try and make the same moves Amemiya once did when she was in high school.

* * *

“What!” Yuzu yelled in disbelief as she stood up from the bench, “W-why didn’t you say anything to me! Did he do anything to you? Did he hurt you?” she paused for moment to swallow a lump in her throat, almost afraid for what she was about to ask. “D-did he touch you?”

“No, no,” Mei sighed as she answered, “He didn’t do any of those things. And before you say anything else, I didn’t do anything about it because he only looked like Amemiya. I wasn’t going to wrongly accuse someone.”

Yuzu only felt more frustration build up inside her towards the memory of witnessing Amemiya’s hands violating her girlfriend’s body. The fact that Mei was trapped in that room for a month with the man who looks like her abusive first ex-fiance made Yuzu nauseous.

“But why didn’t you talk to me sooner about it? Are...are you sure it’s not just Amemiya in disguise?” she frantically probed, “you said he looks almost exactly like him! Even his name sounds similar!”

“No, I’m sure. He only looks like him. And I didn’t say anything because...” the younger girl hesitated for a moment before elaborating, “because it was trivial. Everything about Himemiya-sensei looks identical, except for his voice and overall manner. Over the past month, he has only proven to be a decent instructor. He teaches well and hasn’t gone near me at all unless it’s for some assignment.”

“But Mei, it’s clearly still bothering you and you could’ve gone to me about it,” Yuzu reminded.

“I know, but you seemed so focused on your studies I didn’t want to impede on that, especially for something so trivial.”

Yuzu just gave her another look of concern. “But it’s not trivial. Even if he’s not doing anything, it’s still affecting you in some way.” She sat back down next to Mei and began twiddling her fingers on her own knee, trying to figure out what else to say next. Unable to think of anything else to say that would help, Yuzu slunk her head down to her knees in defeat and sighed, “I’m sorry.”

Mei was taken aback by the blonde’s apology. “Wait, what are you apologizing for? You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“No, that’s it,” Yuzu confirmed, “I didn’t do anything. I was so focused on work that I didn’t pay enough attention to you to notice something was wrong.”

Again. Yuzu was doing it again. If Mei was only honest from the beginning then Yuzu wouldn’t have to place any more unwarranted blame on herself.

“No...you’re right, Yuzu,” Mei admitted, “I should’ve told you.”

While what Mei told her girlfriend about Himemiya-sensei was true, it didn’t change the fact that whenever she saw the man enter the classroom, her survival instincts would involuntarily spring up. He would rarely come near her, except for the occasional hovering while the class took an exam. But each time she saw his face, each time she made eye contact with him, flashbacks of what Amemiya did to her replayed in her mind.

* * *

**Two weeks ago**

“Where is it?”

Mei sighed in frustration as she retraced her steps in the lecture hall. Her textbook had to have been here. She never left her original seat since the first day the term started and she could’ve sworn she left her book in this room.

It wasn’t getting too late, and Yuzu probably wasn’t home from classes yet, but Mei wanted to surprise the other girl by cooking her a nice dinner and needed time to prepare. With the past couple weeks of an increased workload and other extracurriculars, Yuzu would usually come home almost completely drained. Most of the time the older girl would insist on preparing dinner no matter how exhausted she felt. Mei only felt it was fair to decrease the work between them, despite not having much skill or knowledge in cooking.

Maybe those canned soups with the instructions would be good enough.

Regardless, Mei just wanted to find that book of her’s, finish the required homework, and get something cooking before Yuzu gets back to the apartment. After retracing her steps for the fifth time, Mei huffed a breath of disappointment. She was almost tempted to just forget about the book and head straight home.

“Aihara-san? What are you doing here?” she heard from behind.

The younger girl froze in place when she turned around saw that her instructor was in the classroom. Shortly after, she averted her eyes and continued searching, hoping to find her missing textbook soon.

Almost choking on her words in her throat, Mei managed to reply, “I accidentally left my textbook here. But I probably made a mistake, I apologize. I’ll be on my way.” There was no point in worrying about finding that book anymore. The only thing screaming in her mind was to get out of there fast.

“Oh, this was your book?” Himemiya pulled the item from his bag. Sweat formed at her brow and Mei’s heart rate sped up with each step towards her, “What a coincidence! I actually came back here since I forgot something too. I saw your book left behind among the seats in front, but I didn’t think it was your’s since you don’t seem like the type of person to forget stuff.” He let out a chuckle afterwards, but Mei remained silent, still not facing him.

“My name is written in it. And I’ll be taking it back,” she hastily mentioned. She had no interest in wanting to continue any idle chat with the man. Her priority was to get home soon to prepare Yuzu a nice meal, but right now her biggest priority was to get as far away from her teacher as possible.

The atmosphere felt eerily familiar. Only the two of them were in that room, and she was almost expecting herself to be pushed against the desks while he would try to steal a kiss.

Himemiya raised a brow at Mei when she still kept her back turned. He was going to ask her if anything was wrong, but since he’d been there for about a month, didn’t feel he had the right to pry into the business of his students’ personal lives.

“Well, I’ll just leave this here, then” he said as he set her textbook on one of the desks.

Mei heard his footsteps head towards the front of the room. A drawer unlocked and Himemiya grabbed his laptop, placing it in his bag. She was still frozen in place and heard the drawer close and her instructor head out of the room.

“I’ll be seeing you in class tomorrow, Aihara!” Himemiya said before leaving.

No response came from her, and she stood, paralyzed as she heard the sound of his footsteps fading. All of a sudden, Mei felt like she could breathe again. She sighed in disappointment with herself for the way she acted around her teacher. Attempting to forget the moments from earlier, Mei turned around and found her book on the desk. It was there just as Himemiya left it.

“This never happened, this never happened,” Mei repeatedly whispered to herself as she grabbed her book and began heading out.

Now that that was out of the way, she could focus on what to make for dinner for both her and Yuzu. That was supposed to be the only thing on her mind on her way home, but she slowed down as she reached the exit.

Chest constricting, hands tingling, breath ragged, and blood pounding in her ears, Mei staggered with each step.

She didn’t know where this sudden feeling was bubbling up from, but Mei tried to ignore it, tried to push it away, tried to pretend nothing was happening. Himemiya wasn’t even in the room anymore--though, it was probably better this way--but Mei still felt his presence and cursed her body for reacting this way.

Her entire body trembled and Mei quickly took refuge, nearly collapsing, at the desks close to the corner of the classroom. Every time she tried to breathe, it only came out as shallow and rapid.

She didn’t know how much time passed during that episode, but the last thing she remembered was coming home and finding Yuzu passed out on the couch.

* * *

Conveniently, Mei left that last part out when it came to expressing how she felt about being around her instructor. Despite never previously experiencing that unfamiliar drowning sensation, she justified that episodes like those only happened if she was alone and in close proximity with him. It probably wasn’t the best conclusion, but Mei assumed that she would never get herself in that situation again.

However, if Himemiya was anything like Amemiya, it would’ve been so easy for him to take advantage of the situation right then and there.

But he didn’t.

After that incident, she was hoping that she would see finally stop seeing her ex-fiance through her instructor and continue her days normally in that class for the rest of the term. Things seemed to go smoothly for the next few days after what happened. Each time she needed to look at him in the eye, she didn’t wince as much or quickly avert his gaze.

However, there would be a few times where Mei felt her throat close up whenever he approached her. Since it wouldn’t seem this suffocation wouldn’t disappear overnight, the younger girl had to research different ways to overcome whatever breathing difficulties she had around her teacher. And the methods for herself seemed pretty effective in calming herself down. She really believed she could handle this on her own without having to rely on Yuzu’s help.

But then their date came around. And Mei felt her performance in leading the date was rather lackluster.

She looked back to Yuzu, who was still sulking and placing all the blame on herself.

“If it makes you feel any better, do you want to come with me to my school and see what he’s like?” Mei offered. She didn’t know why she even suggested. It was meant to ease the blonde’s worries, but she knew how busy Yuzu was with her own studies and didn’t need her to watch over her.

Knowing Yuzu, she’d drop everything just to help her.

“Yeah! Sure!” Yuzu enthusiastically replied, “I-I mean if t-that’s okay with you.”

“I was the one who offered you to come with,” Mei pointed out, “but I just didn’t know if it’d be a good idea if it means having you skip class.”

“No, no, no! It’s okay, I can make time,” Yuzu then thought back to their respective class schedules placed on the fridge in their home, “I’ve already gotten ahead in my journalism class, so I don’t have to show up.”

“But-” Mei began feeling guilty she possibly got the older girl to ditching classes for her.

“It’s fine, it’s fine!” the blonde reassured. “The class is a little boring, but a bit easy, so I won’t miss much. Besides, I really want to see more of your school!”

Mei looked at Yuzu’s beaming face. If she was okay with it and seemed to be on top of her studies, then it shouldn’t be too much of a problem. She wouldn’t have to feel guilty for impeding on Yuzu’s academic life.

But she did feel selfish after the amount of relief that washed over her after the blonde agreed to accompany her. Especially since, deep down, Mei needed Yuzu to help her get through another day with that teacher.


	15. Daydreamer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, you know when you post something that's bad and you know it's bad? Yeah, that's pretty much what I've been doing for this collection lol 
> 
> It's also a good way for me to get my creative flow working again ^^
> 
> I made this awhile back and it was stuck in WIP hell for ages so here it is aaaaaa

Truth be told, Yuzu’s constant workaholic nature in college was nothing compared to how she was in high school.

There were a list of reasons as to why Mei would typically scold Yuzu; being lazy, irresponsible, violating rules, etc., the list goes on. It was considered a rarity for Mei to scold her out of concern; at least at first. 

The younger girl’s constant use of her authoritative tone made Yuzu unable to tell which was her “president” voice and her “normal” voice. 

“Yuzu, it's time to for bed,” Mei said sternly. 

It had been about 6 straight hours of the blonde just working away for the whole Saturday. The effort impressed Mei at first, but seeing as how this was growing into a trend every weekend, she couldn't help but worry about Yuzu’s health. 

Requesting her to quit after long periods of time was completely useless, and eventually Mei got tired and switched over to “president-mode”. 

“No,” Yuzu replied flatly as she was going through her textbook.

“You can't keep this up forever.”

“Why? Because you think I can't?” Yuzu shot back irritably. The sleep deprivation was really starting to affect her.

“I’m just being realistic,” the younger girl justified. “Look at yourself, you don't know what your getting yourself into.”

Yuzu darted her head back and shot a glare at Mei. “No, I don't think you understand,” standing up from her chair and pointing a finger at the younger girl’s chest.

Mei was getting a slight feeling that the blonde seemed unaware of her own actions. And yet, she seemed almost amused by Yuzu’s assertive nature, though her face didn't show it. 

“Do you have any idea how hard any of this is?” the blonde began, “...how hard it can be to catch up. Cram everything at the last minute?” 

Yuzu nearly tripped over herself as she continued approaching Mei. “I’m sorry I’m not as smart and perfect as you are, Mei. Miss top-of-the-class Student Council President…” 

She drawled on and on about Mei’s position and status in the school that the younger girl eventually lost track of what was going on. 

“You may be the chairman’s granddaughter, but guess what? So. Am. I!” emphasizing the last part. Yuzu felt her head and Mei was ready to catch her from toppling over. 

“Yuzu, that's not important right now-” 

“Yes it is!” Yuzu interjected. She paused for a moment before putting both her hands on Mei’s shoulders. “I’m going to prove to Gramps that I can be worthy too. But the funny thing is, I’m not even doing this for him.” 

Mei didn't try to protest against her stepsister’s sudden declaration of her goals. She just stood still, intently ready to listen what Yuzu was about to say.

“I’m...I’m doing this for you,” the older looked up towards Mei and smiled affectionately, “I want to be worthy enough for you.”

Mei just sighed, giving her stepsister a look of concern. Of course Yuzu would go great lengths for her, but what more did she have to prove to be worthy enough? 

“Yuzu...that's not really necessary,” she timidly said. Without anymore words, Mei began directing Yuzu over to their bed in an effort to bring her to slumber, but the blonde wouldn't move an inch. “Sleep is important, now let's go.”

“No,” grabbing Mei’s arms on her shoulders. “You know, all this studying has really made me think about some things.” 

Mei raised a brow at the statement, confused as to what exactly those things were. “What do you mean?”

Her head hung low, staring at the ground with self-reflection. “I realized I'm not just doing this for Gramps. But…” she brought her head up to stare directly in Mei's mesmerizing lavender eyes. “I'm doing this for you!”

“Yuzu, I thought you already made that clea- Mmph!”

Before Mei could finish her sentence, she was silenced with a deep kiss. 

“I love you, Mei,” Yuzu proudly declared. 

The declaration felt so bold, so confident. It made Mei melt under Yuzu's aura. 

Instead of her brain, it was her heart and mouth that responded to such a declaration.

“I…I love you too, Y-Yuzu.” 

The response was hesitant and shy, but it was all completely from Mei. 

Yuzu kissed her again, this time much softer than before. Pulling back, the blonde leaned her forehead against Mei's. 

“W-what are we doing?” Mei shyly asked. 

Yuzu spoke again in that same bold tone. 

“What our hearts have been telling us to do for a long time.” She swept Mei off her feet as both their hearts danced in sync. “Baby, you’re my forever girl.” 

She learned in for an open kiss, ready to claim her lover, ready to make her all her’s. Nothing else mattered and now…

“Yuzu?” 

The sound of Mei’s voice rung in the blonde’s ears opposite from her direction. 

“Uh, wha?” Yuzu looked in front of her again. Instead of Mei she was cradling in her arms and bent over, there was nothing but air. 

When she turned around, Yuzu found Mei standing behind her with her arms crossed, but with a concerned look on her face. 

“Are you okay?” the younger girl asked, focusing on the dark circles under Yuzu’s eyes. 

“Um...yeah!” A high-pitched voice came out of Yuzu’s mouth as she stood up from her place to straighten herself out. “I uh...just had a daydream, I guess,” she sheepishly added as she scratched the back of her head. 

Mei raised a brow at her, puzzled. 

“Well...you can continue to “daydream” when you get some quality rest,” Mei insisted. She took a blanket from their bed and wrapped it around Yuzu. “Now, off to bed with you.”

“But Meiiiiiii!” Yuzu whined, trying to struggle out of the blanket, “I’m almost finished I swear!” 

“No,” Mei flatly responded. “Good night, Yuzu.”


	16. Like You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuzu already loved her, so what else was missing?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I needed to get back in the mode of writing so I rushed this
> 
> Here you go 👀

For her entire life, Mei had always been expected to be something others wanted her to be.

_You are the Aihara legacy._

_You are an asset to this family._

_You are the student-council president._

_You are the future of this school._

_You are Aihara Mei, daughter of Aihara Shou, and granddaughter of the chairman._

_This is who you are, and you are to fulfill this role._

Everyone around her always expected her to be a certain way, and act in a certain manner. Of course, she accepted this with great enthusiasm initially, wanting to support and be the pillar of success her family always wanted. She was patient, calm, collected, and as time progressed, grew to be a very exceptional leader. Her aura gave off that feeling that you wanted to respect her out of admiration rather than fear.

This was the role Mei had come to accept.

Though, that wasn't to say that Mei had her own doubts and insecurities, questioning who she really was and if anyone would love and admire her without her family ties.

Did people really love her for her? Or was there always something underneath that drew people to her?

By the time she was engaged to be married, her suitor, a well-respected and charismatic teacher, had proven her correct.

He only wanted her for her money, he only wanted her for the name, and as he forced his tongue down her throat and wandering hands along her body, she realized that she was also wanted for purely lustful means as well.

This was the role she was willing to accept.

But then came along Yuzu, and through countless and clumsy methods of trying to break down her walls, Mei gave in and allowed her to step into her world. Yuzu was like no other that Mei had met. At first, Mei wasn't surprised when Yuzu admired her for the person she built herself to be. Everyone admired that part of her. But as time went on, she admired things about her that Mei often found strange.

What foods she liked.

What little quirks she had while she studied.

What shampoo she uses.

How she cooked food.

Her favorite books.

How she slept.

Her favorite things to do in her spare time.

It was very strange, though very comforting for Mei that someone wanted to know this side of her. There was one night where Yuzu had asked her about the book she was reading.

“It's a fantasy book,” Mei shortly replied.

“Meeeiii,” Yuzu whined, “That's not what I meant!”

“Then what did you mean?” Mei sighed as she adjusted her reading glasses. “If you want to know more about what I'm reading then I suggest you can try reading it yourself as well.”

“I mean, what's it about? And don't tell me I should pick it up and read it myself,” Yuzu quickly added before Mei could interrupt her. “I'm asking since I want to know why you like it.”

“Um…” A blush spread across her cheeks as she fiddled with the pages of her book. Mei was trying to find the right words to explain exactly why she liked this book in particular. No one had ever asked her about her interests. Admittedly, she was guarded. Despite Yuzu's genuine interest in her as a person, Mei always felt as if whenever she did talk about her interests, especially those that weren't in her grandfather's list of high or noble arts, her peers and elders would brush her off.

Eventually, Mei came to share her interests with the older girl, and in time began to enjoy simply being herself around another person. There was no school to worry about, no people she had to impress, and no mask she needed to put on.

But something odd festered in the back of Mei's mind the longer she thought about her family’s wishes and herself as a person.

Who was she without the Aihara name?

Yuzu had told her countless times before that she loved Mei with or without her family ties. But no matter how many times Yuzu told her that, it still didn't lessen the painful and indescribable feeling in her chest.

Yuzu loved her for her, so what more did she want?

It wasn’t until she simply paid attention to the way Yuzu talked and interacted with others, that Mei finally understood. The way Yuzu's energy radiated gave her this sense of brimming confidence. She was afraid of nobody. The first day she stepped onto Aihara Academy, Yuzu had no care in the world for how she dressed, how she acted, and what she believed in. Maybe it was the fact that Yuzu had nothing to be tied down to that allowed her to feel free.

Mei admired, yet envied Yuzu's bolstering persona.

Mei loved her family and she loved Yuzu, but there was something else she was missing that she couldn't get out of Yuzu's love or her love for her family.

“How do you do it?” Mei asked in the middle of their date.

Yuzu looked up from her menu and curiously stared at her girlfriend. “I thought you already knew how?”

“Not really…you make it feel so natural.”

Yuzu chuckled in response and turned her menu over to Mei's side of the table, causing the younger girl to raise a brow.

“Well first you just find something that pops out to you,” she pointed over to a dish option titled, *Sexy Roll*, “and then you just hope it tastes as good as your brain makes it out to be!”

Usually, Mei would give her some deadpan or unamused response. But in that moment, she laughed. Whether it was at how cute her girlfriend was being or how Yuzu completely misinterpreted what she wanted to ask, Mei was in awe. She had no idea how she got lucky to have someone like Yuzu.

A crimson blush spread across Yuzu's cheeks, hearing the music of her girlfriend’s laughter fill her ears. Laughter that she caused.

“I didn't mean that,” Mei managed after she finished giggling.

“Hm? Then what did you mean?”

“How are you able to be yourself and…” the younger girl paused, hesitating for a moment, “love it?”

Yuzu thought for a moment about Mei's question, figuring out a way how to answer in a way she could comprehend.

“I just...do,” was all that Yuzu could answer. But the confused and somber expression on her girlfriend's face proved that wasn't enough of answer. In an attempt to cheer her up, Yuzu continued. “At some point you just stop caring about what others think and live for yourself. I know for you that isn't easy, but hey,” her voice softened to a comforting and soothing tone, “I'm here to help you figure that out.”

But how could she help her figure that out?

For years she had always lived under her grandfather's path and her father's shadow. She was there to pick up the pieces after he abandoned everything. She was the one to be a pillar of support for their family that her father couldn't be. She was the one who would fix her father's mistakes. She was supposed to surpass him and be the head of school when her father couldn't be.

It was always about her family. It was always about living up to their expectations. It was always about being better than her father.

It was always about him.

That was how she became who she was.

But…

What about her? Who was she without her father, her family, her school? Was she always going to be nothing but an empty shell, simply filling the role her father could never be?

It was until then, that Mei realized why she felt empty despite Yuzu filling in that gap for her.

Mei both admired and envied Yuzu's love of herself. It was something that seemed so foreign to Mei.

Mei didn't know exactly what Yuzu saw in her, and she had no idea what compelled the older girl to stay with someone as twisted as she is.

However, with the way Yuzu stared into her eyes with awe and wonder, Mei dismissed those thoughts. Those thoughts weren't what mattered.

The younger girl was a long way from truly accepting herself. But for now, she could start with looking through Yuzu's eyes.

One day, Mei hoped she would love herself the same way Yuzu loved her.


	17. T.U.N

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, if you read this it will most likely feel unfinished, but when Door read this and screamed I thought, "yeah I could totally just leave it like this lol" I've been really sporadic on writing lately, even lost motivation to keep going because of Citrus ending and lack of new content and tbh it gets really difficult trying to sustain yourself when there's not much other fanfics to read. Anyway, I wrote this from a Sprinto challenge, and the Writer's Block program from my computer, from the Citrus Discord server (now known as Yuri Garden) and decided to post this here, so...
> 
> Y'all enjoy XD

Her eyes glued to the door of the place she once called home.

Why was she here?

What would she accomplish?

She had already made her choice back when her grandfather needed someone from their family to step up and take over. Her father obviously wasn't going to come back, her mother was out of the picture, and she had no siblings who could possibly take her place. Even if she did have other siblings, particularly, younger ones, there was no way she was going to make the same mistake as her father and push the burdens of the family's responsibilities onto her hypothetical younger brother/sister.

Mei had already chosen Udagawa. She had already chosen her family...over Yuzu. This was supposed to be good for the both of them.

Yet, now she was here in front of Yuzu and her stepmother's apartment. Why was she here? She was already married to Udagawa.

Ironically, she told Yuzu to keep her distance to keep her from losing her resolve with becoming the person her family needed her to be. Ironically, she pushed for her marriage with Udagawa to happen in order to forget Yuzu and move on with her own life.

But none of those options worked.

The past two years of her marriage with Udagawa was nothing but a black hole. There was no more color, nothing to look forward to, and she found little to no pleasure in life.

Was this why she was here?

Did she come running back to Yuzu because she didn't get what she wanted and now she wants her back just to feel a sense of happiness again?

Did it have to take a marriage with a man she barely had much of a connection with for her to realize what she had lost?

Mei shook her head, out of those thoughts, and continued staring at the door. Her eyes laid on the door, then towards the doorbell, and back. When her eyes finally rested on the doorbell, Mei found herself gazing at it, thinking that maybe if she stared at it long enough, it would ring for her.

"What am I doing?" Mei sighed. "She'll never take me back...This was a bad idea."

Instead of turning and walking away as if nothing happened, Mei's finger instinctively reached for the doorbell and touched it.

_DING DONG_

"What?" The ring behind the door broke Mei out of a trance and made her realize what she had just done. "What did I just do!"

In an attempt to save her from confronting Yuzu, she turned and picked up her pace, hoping that the moment someone would open the door, Yuzu or Ume wouldn't find her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lmao will I continue this? Will I not? 
> 
> Find out on the next episode of, "Will Rolex ever finish a fuckn WIP for once?" lol


	18. Mei's Lost Days

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> have some bitch lasangna

Mei sat there, quiety staring at her tea. She didn't speak for a good 5 minutes and every time her husband glanced back at her, it was was if she was in a trance.  
Udagawa walked over

"Mei, are you alright?" he asked.

But Mei sat there quietly, not listening to him, not paying attention to her surroundings. What was the point?

She did what was expected of her, married the man her grandfather chose for her. And it should've been easier.

It should've been easier for her to get accustomed to Udagawa's presence after marrying him and cutting ties with Yuzu. But every minor thing, from the emerald color, to the blonde hair, to the smell of eggs in the kitchen...it all reminded her of Yuzu.

Udagawa touched her shoulder.

"Mei?"

The touch broke her out of her trance for a moment, but she didn't look at her supposed husband.

Turning her head towards him, she didn't see him at all.

Mei knew Udagawa was in front of her, but she didn't see him. Instead of responding with his name, she said

"Yes Yuzu?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay lol 
> 
> so ive been having a hard time trying to write again, and i wrote this on a whim on the Citrus server im at just to see how far I could go. And yeah it's short, but I know writing something like this was something I've wanted to explore so uhh...here it is(?) 
> 
> ~~ill finish Glass Memories eventually~~


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